


National Pride

by DKGwrites



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/F, First Dates, First Meetings, pride month
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-28
Updated: 2018-09-02
Packaged: 2019-05-29 17:10:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 29,531
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15077849
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DKGwrites/pseuds/DKGwrites
Summary: Trying to get her sister over the funk of the breakup with Maggie, Kara takes Alex out to a speed dating event during Pride Month in National City.  In an attempt to get Lena dating, Sam drags Lena to the same event.  Both sisters will meet both of the other ladies for the first time, and interest will form.  What will the eventual pairings be?





	1. Speed

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to get this first chapter in before June ended. I'm sorry it's not all done. I wanted something for Pride, but I didn't want yet another SuperCorp parade fic. I hope this proves enjoyable.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once the dates are all written, readers will vote to decide the pairings. It's up to all y'all.

The restaurant was dimly lit, a collection of small tables with two seats at each.  The word intimate might have been appropriate.  Rainbow decorations sat on stands in the middle of each table, a rainbow flag covering a large section of one wall, and a selection of banners representing different orientations hung down another wall.  The room was filled with women of every shape, color, size, but all women.  It was June in National City.

“Gay,” Alex said succinctly, her arms crossed as she stood just inside the restaurant.

“Alex.”  Kara elbowed her sister, shaking her head.  “Stop it.”

“Hey, I’m allowed to say it.  This place looks gay.  That’s not a slur.  That’s a fact.”

Kara sighed.  “It’s supposed to look gay.  That’s the point.  They’re advertising.”

“I know, Kara, but it looks … gay.”

Glaring at her sister, Kara said, “We’re not leaving.”

“Yeah, but—”

“No.  We’ve discussed this.  You’re ready.  It’s time.”

Alex’s arms dropped to her sides, and her attitude dropped with them.  “But what if I’m not ...  What if I’m not ready to get out there again?”

“Hey.”  Gently squeezing Alex’s upper arm, Kara smiled.  “That’s why you’re not alone.  I won’t be far tonight.  Plus, if you make an idiot of yourself, it will only be for a few minutes.”

Alex sighed.  “Gee, thanks.  You really know how to make your big sister feel better.”

Kara giggled, throwing an arm around Alex’s shoulder and pulling her in closer.  “How about I buy you a beer at the bar.  Will that make you feel better?”

“Let’s find out.” 

Smiling, the sisters headed to the bar and quickly disappeared among the rest of the patrons.

It was soon after that two more women entered the restaurant.  One was tall and brunette with tan skin and long legs.  The other a few inches shorter, her hair even darker but her skin quite pale.  Both were beautiful, and in that crowd, they immediately garnered some attention.

Freezing up just inside the door, Lena shook her head.  “I changed my mind.  I’m going home.”  She had only managed a single step before a strong hand was wrapped around her upper arm, and her CFO was drawing her back.

“Lena, we talked about this,” Sam said.

“Yes, yes we did.  You said I needed to get out and date, and I said the rich recluse image had served me well to date, so why mess with success.”

Sam chuckled.  “Then I said that was bullshit.  Your life is not serving you well; it’s serving your business well but not your happiness.  You need to get out and meet people, find your happiness before you end up alone like your mother and your brother.”

Frowning, Lena replied, “My mother and my brother are in solitary confinement.”

“See, alone.”  Sam smiled, looping her arm through Lena’s and pulling the other woman further into the restaurant.  “This is the perfect opportunity for you to meet a bunch of women but not be forced into a long, uncomfortable situation.”

“Several short, uncomfortable conversations are not ideal either, Samantha.”

“Oh, hey, watch it with the full first name.  Soon we’ll be full name using, and those are fighting words.”  Sliding her arm around Lena’s shoulder, Sam smiled.  “Now, we already have our tickets and numbers.  Let’s just go over to the bar, order a drink, and relax until the event starts.”

“Well, I do like alcohol.”

Sam laughed.  “I know you do, sweetie.  Come on.  You’ll feel much braver with a whiskey in you.  Then maybe you can pretend you’ll be facing a boardroom filled with angry white men trying to take your company away from you and not some lovely woman who just wants to get to know you better.”

“Ugh, I wish it were a pack of angry men hell-bent on ruining me and taking my company.  Those I know how to handle.”  As Sam paused and stared at her, eyebrows high, Lena frowned.  “What’s wrong with me that I’d rather fight off a hostile takeover than meet a nice woman?”

“Oh, sweetie, I don’t have time to unpack all of that baggage, but let’s start with your mother and a whiskey.”  Sam signaled to the bartender.  “Maybe we can at least get through one of your overnight bags.”

It was about twenty minutes later when the host for the evening gathered everyone’s tickets and announced that they’d be starting tonight’s event.  She then went over the rules for the evening.  Every table had a number.  A woman who had a black ticket was to sit at her matching table number and stay there for the event.  They were the table holders for the evening.  Anyone who wasn’t at a table was signed up as a roamer for the event.  Roamers had each been given a red ticket that matched the number on one of the tables.  That was their starting table.  Roamers were to pin this to themselves in some way that it would be visible when they were sitting.  Roamers would sit for five minutes, and the ladies would talk about whatever they both wanted to discuss.  After five minutes a bell would ring, and everyone had one minute to move clockwise to the next table where another bell would ring.  Then the process would start all over again.  Once every roamer had visited every table, the event was done.  Both table holders and roamers had cards with ever table number on it.  They were to write down the name of each person who came to see them and their number.  When the event was done, they could list off their top three choices of ladies they’d met and would like to get to know better.  If their choices matched with anyone else’s, if that person also wanted to get to know them better, they’d be sent an email with contact information that their match had supplied.

“All right ladies,” the host said as she smiled brightly.  “I need the table holders to take their seats.  Roamers, start your engines, and let the speed dating begin!”

Standing at the bar, trying to control her breathing, Lena watched the women settling into the various seats at the tables.  She grabbed Sam’s hand.  “I can’t do this.  I’m going to throw up.”

“Oh, no, you’re not because that would make for an awful first impression.  Take another sip of your whiskey.”

Grabbing her glass, Lena downed it all at once.”

“Eh, close enough,” Sam said with a shrug.  “Now listen to me.  You are Lena Keiran Luthor.  You are CEO of L-Corp and heir to the Luthor fortune.  Grown men shake with fear when you walk into a room and are reduced to a quivering mass when you leave.  Women either want to be you, be with you, or both.”

“Sam, someone can’t both be a person and—”

“Shhhh.  I’m giving you a speech.  Don’t interrupt.  You are a leader of industry, a pioneer in your field, an engineer without peer, one of the greatest minds on this planet, and a hot piece of ass.”

Lena barely contained a yelp when Sam slapped her on the ass.

“Hey, why aren’t I dating you?”

Lena shrugged.  “Because you work for me, and you’re my only friend?”

Frowning, Sam said, “Remind me to look up the HR policies on fraternization at work Monday.  Anyway, you’ve got this girl.  You’ve got more to offer than any other woman here.  Someone would have to be a literal goddess to be worthy of you.  Better?”

With a small smile, Lena nodded.  “Now I just need you to follow me around tonight and whisper that in my ear the entire time.”

“Kinky, and it might attract a certain type but maybe not the sort you want.”

“Roamers, we’re ready for you!” the host announced.  “Please get to your table.  The event will begin in one minute.”

“You’re going to be fine,” Sam said as she hugged Lena.  “Just be yourself, and I’ll see you when this is all over.  Maybe you’ll meet someone fantastic.”

Watching Sam leave, Lena sighed.  “Doubtful.”  Forcing the frown off her face, Lena lifted her chin and headed off to her starting table.

 

<><> 

 

Alex had been sitting at her table for over a half an hour.  Head a bit dizzy as she wrote down a new name each time and tried to keep track of a few traits, she smiled and said goodbye to the latest woman at her table, someone who was even more butch than her.  She was writing ‘Grab a beer and watch the game together maybe’ in the notes section as the next person sat.  When Alex looked up to see the woman across from her, Alex’s eyes widened, and she momentarily lost her cool.  Long nearly black hair hung down across the woman’s shoulder, and green eyes that seemed to pick up some of the blue from the woman’s silk shirt sparkled in the light.  As the newcomer gave a small, almost shy smile, Alex returned it.

“I’m uh … um … uh …” Brows furrowed, Alex stammered and finally muttered, “Son of a bitch.”

Her smile growing as she played with her pen, Lena said, “Is that your given name?”

“Ugh.”  Alex dropped her head into her hands before lifting it to smile at Lena and shrug.  “Well, I’ve been called worse.”

That got a chuckle.  “Lena.”  She held out her hand.

“Alex.”  She shook Lena’s hand briefly.

“Oh, that’s a much better name.  And here I thought your parents weren’t at all fond of you.”

“Well, if it had been up to my mom right after labor, that might have been my name.  You know what I mean?”

“Uh …”

A bell rang signaling that their five minutes had started.

“Right, well, I guess we’re doing this,” Lena said.  “Alex, what do you do for a living?”

“I’m a field agent with the FBI.  What about you?”

“The FBI?” Lena blinked several times.  “Okay, wow.  Um … I’m the CEO of a technology firm here in National City.”

“A CEO?  Impressive.  You seem kind of young for a CEO.  Are you young for a CEO, Lena?”

Lena shrugged.  “It’s my company, so I suppose I’m as old as I need to be.  It’s a family business, actually.  I just stepped into place.  Are you young to be an FBI agent, Alex?  You seem different than the FBI agents I’ve met.”

Leaning back in her chair, Alex studied Lena.  “You’ve met a lot of FBI agents?”

Leaning back to match Alex’s posture, Lena’s face became a placid mask.  “My company has many government contracts that require NDAs.  I’ve associated with several representatives from the U.S. government.”

After a few seconds of staring at Lena, Alex deflated and sat forward, her forearms on the table.  “Hey, let’s not do this work thing at each other.  We have like four minutes left to get to know each other.  I know I could spend that trying to stare you down and break you.  How about you?”

“... same,” Lena admitted as she relaxed and smiled.

“Okay, then let’s throw each other a few softballs, chat a bit, and see if we can’t get to know each other.  What do you say?”

“Agreed.  So, where did you go to school?  What was your major?”

“Uh, I got my MD in bioengineering from the University of Southern California.”

Sitting up straight, Lena’s eyes widened.  “Really? I have Doctorates in Chemical Engineering and Mechanical Engineering from MIT.”

“Two … How old are you?”

Ignoring the question, Lena said, “Tell me, Doctor Alex, what do you think about the research that’s being done with nano-tech to combat cancer?”

It took Alex just a moment to regain her verbal footing, but she replied, “Well, that depends, are we talking about using inorganic nanoparticles like silver and gold as contrast agents in in vivo tumor imaging, or are we talking about nanobots like the clam shaped ones they’re using at the Bar-Ilan University in Israel to deliver drugs to cancer cells while leaving other cells untouched?”

“The nanobots are exciting, aren’t they?”  Lena waved her hands between the two women as she spoke.  “What I read said they were able to recognize and target twelve different types of cancer cells.”

“So far,” Alex replied with a smile.

“Sar far,” Lena agreed.  “So, what about nanoparticles and the microcanon?”

“The one they’re using just down the road in San Diego?  God how I’d love a tour of that facility.”

Hands palm up in front of herself, Lena smirked.  “I might know a person or two at the University of San Diego.  Maybe something could be arranged.”

Hands pressed together almost as if in prayer, Alex clapped just at the fingertips.  “I’d love to get their nanobytes under my microscope.  I probably shouldn’t tell you the things I’d do for that.”

Lena’s smile grew until it was full and lit up her whole face.  “Second date material?”

“Um … probably fourth,” Alex said as she tugged at her collar with a finger.  “At least I feel like I’m saying it to the only person here that would probably get it.”

“Oh, indeed.  Right now they’re using ultrasonic waves to guide the nanoparticles, but imagine if the team from Bar-Ilan managed to code swarm behavior into their bots—”

“And then the San Diego team used that coding to guide swarms of their nanobytes?”  Alex had sat upright in her seat but quickly slumped back again.  “Whooo.  I’d need to be alone with myself.”

“Or with someone else?”

“Well, someone who, you know, got it.”

Lena hummed her agreement.

After a few seconds of them sitting silently in thought, Alex asked, “Okay, so when you aren’t reading science journals, what do you do for fun?”

“Oh, I hate this question.  I work a lot.  You know, CEO, female, young, gay and all of that in the world of older, straight men.  I have a lot to prove, and I spend a lot of time doing it.”  Lena thought for a moment.  “Does drinking count?  Great, now I sound like an alcoholic.  I’m not an alcoholic.”

“Hey, I’m not judging.  My job is stressful and dangerous.  I enjoy some beers out with my friends or just a glass of whiskey at times.”

“You’re a whiskey woman.”

Alex nodded.

“Huh.  Could you get any better?”

“I don’t know.  Are you into motorcycles and firearms?  I’ve got more than one of each.”

Elbow on the table, Lena’s chin sat on the palm of her hand.  “You are a woman of many surprises, Doctor Alex.”

“Agent, actually.  No one really calls me doctor.”

“Well,” one eyebrow raised and a sultry tone in her voice, Lena grinned, “that’s a pity.  Perhaps you could make an exception for me.”  As the bell rang, Lena pushed out her chair.  “Unfortunately, that’s my cue.”

Hurriedly, Alex pushed her chair back and stood, holding out her hand.  “It was really nice meeting you, Lena.”

“The pleasure was mine,” Lena replied, shaking Alex’s hand.

“Did you, uh, did you get my name there?”  Alex pointed toward the list in Lena’s hand.

Lena held up her list with each name neatly written down, but no other notations.

“You … you don’t take notes?”

Quirking an eyebrow up, Lena smiled from one side of her mouth as she leaned in slightly.  “Alex, doctor and biomedical engineer with the FBI, you’re not easily forgotten.  I’ll remember you.”  Turning, she walked toward the next table, leaving Alex to follow with her gaze.

“Holy crap, she’s gorgeous and brilliant,” Alex muttered as she slid back into her chair.  A new woman shuffled into Lena’s vacated seat, a blonde with brown eyes, and Alex nodded, giving her a brief smile, then wrote next to Lena’s name, ‘Marry her and make beautiful genius babies’.  Lifting her head, Alex stuck out her hand and casually said, “I’m Alex.  I’m a doctor, and I’m in the FBI.  Nice to meet you.”

 

<><> 

 

“Bye!  Nice to meet you!  Hope to see you again!  Love your shirt!”  Kara smiled and waved goodbye to the last woman who had sat at her table, then took her seat again, drawing a smiley face and cat face next to the woman’s name.  She looked up, her smile growing as she took in the sight of the tan brunette who was taking a seat across from her.

“Wow.  Hi.  I mean, I’m Kara.”

Sam laughed, extending her hand and shaking Kara’s.  “All of those are good.  I’m Samantha, but please, call me Sam.  Everybody does unless they’re yelling at me, and I’m in trouble.”  Sam jotted something down quickly on her sheet.

“Okay, Sam,” Kara replied with a small laugh. “What do you do for a living?”

“Math, lots of math.”

“Sounds boring.”  Kara cringed.  “Sorry, was that my outside voice?  My mouth tends to move faster than my brain.  I’m sure your job is exciting.”

Sam shrugged.  “I’m good at it, and some days are better than others.  Some days are boring, and some are annoying.  I guess that’s why they pay me to be there.”

“Oh, good point.”  Kara looked away as she wrote down a few things on her sheet of paper.

“What about you, Kara, what do you do for a living?”

“I write.  I’m a reporter for Catco Magazine.”

“Wow.  Well, now that sounds exciting.”  Sam jotted something down on her sheet.

Kara ducked her head and used one finger to shove her glasses back into place.  “It sounds exciting, but a lot of my articles are about local events like animal adoption day at the park.  Oh, don’t get me wrong.  I love animals.  Animals are the best, and they need someone to write about them, but I want to write harder-hitting articles too, you know?”

Sam nodded.  “Like what?”

“Alien rights.”

“Alien rights,” Sam repeated as she studied Kara and ignored the bell that chimed their time beginning.  “And what’s your opinion on that?”

“Well, people are people,” Kara replied slowly as she watched Sam.  “We should judge people on their actions, not their race, don’t you think?”

Smiling, Sam rolled one of her hands in front of herself.  “Go on.”

Obviously, heartened by Sam’s lack of bigotry, Kara forged forward.  “Well, the aliens who are here are refugees.  This country was founded by refugees.  Who are we to say a place belongs to someone just because they got there first?  Wouldn’t it be better to find a way that we can all live in harmony?  Anyway, many of the refugees have knowledge of advanced technology that could help Earth if we could all just find a way to live together peacefully.”

Nodding and smiling, Sam said, “Now that’s an article I’d like to read.  When does it go to print?”

“Never if my editor has anything to say about it.  I think he has it in for me.  He yells at me all the time and calls me Ponytail.”

“Because you’re a woman?”

Kara shook her head.  “Snapper’s not sexist just unpleasant.  I think he hates everyone equally.”

“Is his name really Snapper?”

“Maybe?”  Kara shrugged.  “Anyway, enough about me.  You said you do math for a living.  Are you an accountant?”

“I have a Master’s in Accounting, but I’m a CFO by trade or title or whatever you want to call it.” Sam waved one hand around a bit dismissively.

“Wow, Miss Fancy Title.”  Kara jotted something down.  “Okay, I’m impressed.  Of what kind of company do you CFO?  Do you say it that way?  Does that make sense?”

“Of what kind of company am I the CFO but close enough,” Sam said with a gentle smile.  “It’s a technology firm here in National City.  My best friend is the CEO, and she called me up to come in and help her out with some of the day-to-day duties.  As soon as my daughter finished her semester of school, we packed up and headed out here.”

“You have a daughter.”

“Deal breaker?”

“What?  No!  I love kids.  Puppies, kittens, and kids, I love them all.  Oh, not that kids are like animals.  I just mean …” Eyes closed, Kara sighed.  “I feel like an idiot.  Do I sound like an idiot?”

Squeezing Kara’s hand where it rested on the table, Sam said, “You sound adorable.  I think you’re sweet.  So, you like animals and kids, huh?”

With a shy smile, Kara nodded.

“Well, what’s not to like about that?” Sam said and scribbled something down on her sheet.

“Thanks.  So, what’s your daughter’s name?”

“Ruby, she’s twelve.”

“Twelve?”  Surprise showed on Kara’s face.  “You must have been young when you had her.  Unless you’re older than you look.  I mean … I just … I’m shutting up now.”

Sam laughed.  “You’re fine.  I was eighteen when I got pregnant.  It was prom.  The guy was a mistake, but Ruby wasn’t.  She’s the best part of every part of my days even when she’s challenging me.”

“I remember twelve-years-old.”  Kara blinked rapidly as light-years worth of memories washed over her, and she had to force a smile back on her face.  “Yeah, twelve was a rough age.”

“Are you all right?”

Kara’s smile didn’t reach her eyes, but she nodded.  “It was a tough year.”

Slowly, Sam’s hand crept back over Kara’s again offering gentle reassurance.  “What happened?”

Kara blinked, her mouth opening to deny or change the subject, but as she looked into Sam’s eyes, she found herself saying, “My parents died.  I was adopted a year later and … I’m sorry.  I don’t know why I told you that.  We don’t even know each other.”

“No, I’m sorry.  I didn’t mean to push.”  Sam began to sit back and withdraw her hand.  “I never met my birth parents.  My mother adopted me as an infant and—” Suddenly Kara’s hand was turned over and grasping hers, fingers curled up to meet fingers.  Sam smiled, grasping Kara’s fingers in return.  “I always have wondered, but maybe I’m better not knowing if they just weren’t ready to have kids or if they …” She shrugged.

“You have a mom who loves you though.  You were chosen.”

“Well … When I got pregnant, she wanted me to make a choice.  It was stay at home or Ruby.”  This time Sam did withdraw her hand as she sat upright, holding her head high.  “There was no choice.”

“How …?”  Kara shook her head.

“Don’t ask me.  I can’t imagine anything that Ruby would ever do that would make me want her to leave home.  I mean, I’m not saying I’d help her bury a body but …” A sly smile grew on Sam’s face.  “You should have your kid’s back, right?”

“For homicide?”

“Parents are supposed to do things with their kids.  It would be a bonding experience.”

“It’s illegal.”

“Oh, only if we got caught,” Sam said dismissively.

Kara frowned.  “I’m still pretty sure it’s illegal even if they don’t catch you.”

Sam laughed.  “I am trying to raise her to avoid murder.  I think the closest she got was when Willy Martin kept breaking her crayons in the first grade.  She was pretty mad about that.  Otherwise, we’re pacifists.  We use our words, not our hands.”

“Well, as a reporter, I’m a big fan of using my words.”

“You don’t believe in violence either?”

“Ah …” Smiling a bit stiffly, Kara nodded.  “No one would be happier than me if we could all just live in peace and harmony.  No one.”

“You’re sweet.  So, you’re a lover not a fighter, huh?”

Shrugging, Kara said, “I don’t know.  My sister says I’m a consumer of pizza and ice cream.”

“Sister?”

“Adopted sister but she’s the best, literally the best.  We fought like crazy for the first year after I ended up with my new family, but then things changed, and I couldn’t imagine my life without her.  Se’s my best friend.”

“That must be nice.”

Kara nodded.  “How about you?  Any siblings?”

“Nope, it’s just Rubes and me.  It’s made us really close too, though, so I’m pretty lucky.”

“What about plans for siblings for Ruby I mean.”

“Plans, no.”  Sam shrugged.  “If I met someone who had kids, or someone who wanted to join our family and we decided to add to it, I wouldn’t be opposed.  I think maybe I’d want to adopt if I were to do this again.  I was adopted, and I’d like to give that to another child.  You probably understand that.”

“Yeah, I think so.”  Smiling and nodding, Kara fiddled with her glasses again.  “My situation was definitely extenuating, but I can see wanting a family and kids one day.  I think I would have to adopt.  I’d have no choice.”  As Sam stared at her oddly, Kara added, “Medical condition.”

“Oh, I’m sorry.  You can’t have kids?”

“It’s unlikely, but it’s okay.  I have a great family, and like we’ve both said, adoption is an option.  It doesn’t make you any less of a family.”

“There’s something very special about knowing you were chosen.”

“Mhmm.” 

The bell rang, and both women looked up as people around them stood and began to move. 

“And I’ve got to go,” Sam said.  “It was really nice meeting you, Kara.”

“It was great meeting you too.”  Kara smiled brightly and stood, holding out her hand.

Sam shook Kara’s hand, holding it afterward.  “I hope I see you around.”

“Yeah.  Same.  It would be really nice to see you, you know, again.”

“I agree.  As I said, it’s lovely to feel chosen.”  With a wink, Sam moved on to the next table, leaving Kara to hurriedly add to her notes as the next woman sat.

 

<><> 

 

Alex smiled and waved goodbye to the woman who left her table, scribbling a few quick and unremarkable notes.  As she looked up, a stunning brunette sat down.  Gaze skimming from chocolate brown eyes, long dark hair, tan skin, to full lips, Alex’s brain skipped a beat as a lollipop was pulled out of the woman’s mouth.

“Hey, I’m Sam.”

“Sam,” Alex repeated as she stared for several seconds without saying anything else before shaking her head to clear it.  She stuck out her hand.  “Alex, I’m Alex.”

“Hi, Alex.  You like lollipops?”

“Apparently.”

Sam laughed and shrugged, putting the lollipop back into her mouth for a moment before pulling it out again.  “The woman at the previous table gave it to me.  Apparently, she likes lollipops too.”

“Yeeaaahhhh.”

A bell rang signaling that their five minutes had started.

“So, Sam, what do you do besides distracting women with candy?”

“Distracting?”  Leaning back in her chair, Sam grinned.  “I play with spreadsheets and other people’s money.”

“An accountant, a banker?”

“More like an accountant.  What about you?”

“More like a doctor.”  Alex ran a hand through her hair.

“Alex, redhead, hot doctor.” Biting her lower lip, Sam pulled her sheet in close and scribbled on it.

“What did you write?  Did you write that?”

“Maybe,” Sam said slowly.  “You don’t get to find out yet.”

“When do I get to find out?”

Sam just smiled.  “So, hot doctor, do you work out of a hospital, or are you in private practice?”

“Um, neither?”

“You don’t sound sure.”

“No, I’m sure.  It’s neither.  I work for the government.”

“You’re a government doctor?”

Alex shrugged.  “Sort of?  I’m a bioengineer with the FBI.”

“Ah.”  Writing on her list again, Sam said, “Hot FBI doctor.”

Alex leaned in again.  “No, seriously, are you writing that down?”

“Hey!” Sam pulled her paper in close to her body as she smirked at Alex.  “No copying off my paper.  I’ll tell the teacher.”

“Okay, okay,” Alex said with a laugh.  “Tattle-tale.”

“Oh, you must have siblings.”

“A younger sister.”  Alex looked around the room.  “She’s here somewhere.”

“Picking up women is a family event for you two?”

“Not really.  I’ve been moping around the house ever since my girlfriend and I broke up, so my sister dragged me here.  We were getting kind of serious, my ex and I, and we started talking about the future.  It turns out we wanted different things.”

“Like what?”

Looking away, Alex shook her head.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to pry.”

“It’s not you.  It’s just … I found out what my deal breaker is.  I know you need to make compromises in relationships, and I can do that, but I can’t compromise myself, you know?”

“Sure.  It sounds like you know yourself.”

“God no.”  With a laugh, Alex shook her head and stared at her folded hands, crossing and uncrossing her thumbs over each other.  “I’m learning though.  I knew I’d do anything for my family, and my family isn’t just blood.  I’ve made an amazing extended family since I moved out here.  My job is important, and I give it 110%.  One day though, one day I’m going to want a partner to come home to, and that will be a woman.  I’ll want us to start a family of our own.  When I think about the future, it’s me, a wife, and a kid or more.  I want to be the mom my mom was.”  She lifted her head to see Sam watching her.  “TMI, huh?  Maybe that’s not pre-first date material.”

Sam shook her head as she smiled and pulled out her phone.  Unlocking it, she swiped the screen and then held it out to Alex showing a picture of a smiling twelve-year-old girl.  “That’s Ruby.”

“She’s beautiful.”  Alex’s fingers hovered inches from the screen as she stared wide-eyed at the image.  “Is she …” Looking up again, their gazes met.

“Ruby’s my daughter.”

“You’re a lucky mom.”

“I know.  Even though puberty is challenging, I know.”  Sam pulled her phone away from Alex’s gaze and dropped it back into her purse.  “You’ll be a lucky mom one day too.”

“Yeah?”  Alex ran a hand through her hair again.  “God, I hope so.”

“Hey, you will.”  Reaching across, Sam squeezed Alex’s forearm.  “You just have to find some woman who’s smart enough to see it.”  They smiled at each other for a few seconds before Sam cleared her throat and pulled back her hand.  “So, you’re a doctor, some sort of spy, sister, and potential parent.  Tell me what’s wrong with you, Alex?”

“We don’t have time for that.  I think we have maybe two minutes left.”

“Oh, so it’s official first date material?”  When Alex just blinked, Sam sucked on her lollipop again, smiling.  “Come on.  Tell me a dirty little secret, and I’ll tell you one.”

“I, uh, I don’t have any dirty little secrets.  My life is pretty boring.”

“You’re an FBI doctor.  You must have had some exciting cases.”

“I’m pretty much in the lab.”

“All the time?  You’ve never met anyone famous?”

“I’m not really allowed to discuss—”

“Oh, right.  Sorry.”  Sam held up a hand and looked away.

Hurriedly, Alex offered, “Supergirl.”

Sam’s head whipped back to Alex, “You’ve met Supergirl?”

“Met her?  I know her.  We’re like this.”  Alex held her hand out in front of her, fingers crossed.

“You’re kidding.”

“I have her on speed dial.”

“Wow.  My daughter would love you.”

“It’s not your daughter I’m trying to impress,” Alex muttered.

“Right.  Sorry.  Well, the way to a mother’s heart …” Sam grinned.

Smiling back, Alex said, “I bet I could make an introduction if … ah …”

“Ruby.”

“Ruby, right, if Ruby wanted to meet Supergirl.”

Eyes wide, Sam asked, “Are you sure?” 

“Sure I’m sure.  Supergirl loves meeting kids.  She’d do it no problem.”

Sam pulled her list close again, writing something and then smiling over at Alex.  “I may or may not be writing the word perfect down next to your name.”

“Then you may or may not be wrong.”

Smile growing, Sam replied, “I look forward to finding out.”

Swallowing hard, Alex nodded.  “Yeah, me too.  So, ah, it’s your turn.  Tell me a deep, dark secret.”

“I don’t remember you telling me one.”

“Well, then tell me a flaw.  From where I’m sitting, Sam, you seem pretty darn perfect too.”

Sam laughed.  “Oh, hardly.  Between my insistence that corn isn’t the only vegetable we eat—”

“It’s a grain.”

Sam pointed at Alex with her lollipop and nodded.  “And my totalitarian rule in refusing to extend Ruby’s bedtime by a half an hour, I may be the worst parent ever.”

“Totalitarian rule?”

“I blame our education system.  What are they teaching kids in school today?”

“History?  Politics?”

“Your tax dollars at work, Alex.”  Sam took another suck on her lollipop, smiling as Alex’s gaze tracked the motion, then withdrawing it to say, “Plus I work a lot.”

“Well, same here.  I work hard, but I play hard.”

“My daughter will always come first.  Anyone I date will have to expect that.”

“And Ruby should always know it, should never doubt it.  I never did with my mom.”  Writing on her own list, Alex smiled.  “I may or may not be writing the word perfect next to your name, Sam.”

The bell rang, and Sam rose.  “I hope I get to find out.”

As she watched Sam walk away, Alex sighed.  “My God, I love Pride month.”

 

<><> 

 

“Good luck with your dog!”  Kara waved goodbye to the woman who left her table and wrote down a few quick notes, glancing up at the newcomer to her table.  “Hey.”  Pen hovering over her page, Kara didn’t move for several moments until she looked back up and gazed into green eyes.

Smiling at the blonde across from her, Lena grinned.  “Hello, I’m Lena, and who might you be?”  When the other woman just stared, Lena sighed.  “Do you know me?”

“I wish,” Kara replied, finally having found her words.  Swallowing hard, she fumbled to readjust her glassed, blinking her distress.  “I mean, I’m Kara.  No, we’ve never met.  I’d remember you.”  Kara cringed.  “Sorry.  My inside voice tends to be my outside voice.  My sister is always talking to me about that.”

With a laugh, Lena replied, “Well, I think it’s charming.  Tell me something else interesting about you, Kara.”

“Hmmm.”  Fiddling with the pen in her hands, Kara said, “I’m not really very interesting.  I’m just your average, everyday human.  Yup, that’s me.  I’m super average.  How about you?  Are you average?”

“Oh, God, no.”  Lena laughed.  “In my family, average is practically a curse word.  Exceptional is considered average.  I’m,” Lena considered and finally settled on, “motivated.”

“Wow, that sounds impressive.”

“Don’t be impressed.  I’m not impressive, just badgered by my mother to try and be a success in her eyes and yet still never succeed.”  A bell rang signaling that their five minutes had started.  “Well, now that I’ve probably scared you off, want to tell me something about yourself, or are you a therapist, and do you perhaps want to slide me a business card?”

Kara laughed with a bit too much force.  “Funny, ha!  No, I’m not a therapist.  My foster mother is a doctor but not that kind.”

“Foster mother?”

“Yeah, I was never officially adopted but close enough.  Eliza treats me like a daughter.  I’m pretty lucky.”  Kara smiled.

“It sounds like it.  I am adopted, but my mother is nothing but challenging.  She definitely has preferred my brother and … I’m going to stop before I get started on that again.  Sorry.”

“It sounds like she’s tough on you.”

Lena shrugged.  “I’ve been given a lot in life, so don’t feel too badly for me.  I’ve had a fairly privileged life.”

Kara nodded, her eyes wandering to Lena’s cleavage.

Clearing her throat, Lena said, “Kara?”

“Oh, um, I like your,” Kara pointed, “necklace.”

Looking down, Lena smiled as she held out the pendant that hung from the chain around her neck.  “Ah, this is an interesting piece.  My brother bought it for me from a merchant in Indonesia.”

“Your brother was in Indonesia?”

“We both were, actually, Borneo to be exact.  We were supposed to be in Jakarta.  He had a business trip, and I was out of school for break and being shown a bit of my future.  Our plane landed, and while they were loading our bags into the back of the limo, my brother took my hand and just lead me to this motorcycle that had caught his interest.  He said something in a language I still to this day don’t speak, handed the man on the motorcycle a fistful of money, and the man left.  My brother said, ‘Hurry up, get in the sidecar.’  I honestly still thought this was part of the planned trip.  All I had was my overnight bag.  The next thing I knew we were on the open road, and I didn’t see my luggage or the hotel for days.”

Arms pressed to the table as she leaned forward, Kara asked, “How old were you?”

Laughing, Lena rolled her eyes.  “Fifteen.”

“Fifteen?  Isn’t that kidnapping?”

“Oh, no.”  Lena shook her head, then an odd look crossed her face.  “Well, maybe.  You know what, I’d rather not think about it.”

“How old was your brother?”

“Twenty-four.”

“Was he your legal guardian?”

“Well, no but—”

“I think it’s kidnapping.”

“It’s not.  It’s fine.”  Lena waved a hand at Kara.  “I’m very familiar with kidnapping, and that wasn’t it.  The fit my mother had when we did show back up at the hotel, you would have thought it was murder.  Actually, it was much worse than her reaction than that.  She handles murder fairly well too.  Mother had dozens of people out looking for us because she assumed we had been kidnapped.  The police had been alerted.  The FBI was called in.  We made national news.  It was one of the few times I ever heard her yell at my brother.”

Frowning, Kara nodded.  “I’m sure he didn’t mean to scare her.  I bet he apologized a lot.”

“Are you kidding?  All he said was, ‘Oops.’ and then he laughed and laughed.”

“I, uh, I guess your brother has a pretty good sense of humor.”

“If you ask him, sure.  If you ask anyone who’s lived in Metropolis …”  Lena sighed.  “Come on.  I’m monopolizing this conversation.  Tell me something about you.  Where are you from?”

“Where am I from?”

“I’d say you aren’t local.  I’ve traveled a lot, and I’d say you aren’t American.  Were you born in Europe?”

Eyes wide, Kara asked, “You can tell I wasn’t born in this country?”

Leaning back in her chair, Lena said, “Your accent is nearly flawless.  Honestly, it’s better than mine.  However, I did notice a certain elongation or shortening of vowels in a few spots.  Are you French?”

Slowly, Kara smiled.  “I moved here, to this country, to California actually, when I was thirteen.  I’ve been here for more than half my life.  People almost never realize I wasn’t born here.”

“People who do, usually they’re not native, are they?”

“No,” Kara said, still smiling.

Lena nodded.  “Not surprising.  Well, tell me something else.  You seem interesting, like you’re holding things back.”

“Okay, well, I moved in with my new family when I was thirteen, and that was a bit of an adjustment.  I guess everything is tough at that age, but I had to learn a new language, a new culture, and I’d just lost my family.”

Face softening, Lena asked, “How long were you in foster care?”

Kara paused, staring at Lena for several seconds before she replied, “A year.”

Lena flinched.  “I’m sorry.  I was only there for a few months when I was four.  Still, I remember it.  It was hard, lonely.”

“Lonely, yeah.  I’d never felt so alone as I did … there.”

Lena nodded.  “You’re constantly surrounded by everything you’ve lost.  It’s absolutely—”

“Claustrophobic,” Kara finished. 

Lena laughed awkwardly.  “Well, I’m quite certain this has been the worst four minutes of your adult life.  I do have a knack.  I’d give myself points for consistency, but that doesn’t count when you’re a screw-up.”

“No.”  Kara grabbed Lena’s hand, squeezing gently.  “It’s kind of nice to have someone who understands.  I guess misery really does love company.”  There were a few moments of quiet.  “Hey, what did you want to be when you grew up?”

“Well, when I was very young, I wanted to be a musician like my birth mother, but I’m absolute rubbish at music.  So, I studied science and engineering.”

“You’re a scientist.”

“By education, by preference, by drive, yes.  I didn’t want other children to go through what I went through.  What about you?”

Kara held up her hand.  “Wait a sec.  What do you mean, what you went through?  What happened, and what does it have to do with science?”

“I …” Lena shook her head, but when Kara leaned a bit closer, smiling encouragingly, Lena said, “I lost my mother to cancer when I was four.  When I was eleven, I lost my adopted father to cancer.  That disease took the only two real, loving parents I’ve ever known.  When I got my degrees, a friend and I launched a startup to work on curing cancer.  We were close too, I know it, but then life got in the way.  I’m going to crack it one day, and no child will ever watch their parents get eaten away from the inside out by that disease.  No parents will ever watch their child waste away from that bastard.”

“Lena, I’m so—”

Waving Kara away, a defensive smile came to Lena’s lips.  “As I said, don’t ever feel badly for me.  I have been given much more than most.”

“That means you have more to lose.  Trust me.  I know.”

After several blinks, Lena nodded once.  “Maybe.  Anyway, what did you want to be when you grew up?  We probably have thirty seconds left, so say something brilliant.”

“A lawyer.”

Lena quipped an eyebrow.

“You’re not impressed,” Kara said with a laugh.  “Sorry.  My mother was a lawyer of sorts, and I wanted to take after her.  Then I moved here and ended up going to school for art.  I’d always been a skilled painter, but it wasn’t until Eliza sat me down and talked to me about it that I understood what was going on.  I’d lost everything when I lost my family.  I didn’t have a picture, a box of cards, old toys, anything but my memories from home, and I wanted to get those down before they faded, so I painted, and I wrote.  Now I’m a writer, and I try to help other refugees who have lost their homes and families too.”

“That’s amazing.”

“Not really.”  Kara looked away, pushing up her glasses.  “I just—”

“Kara.”  Lena waited until Kara made eye contact again.  “When loss touches your life, it changes you deeply, but it doesn’t have to define you.  It sounds like it changed you into someone who defines the world around her for the better.”

Smiling, Kara replied, “I don’t think I’m the only one.”

Lena rose at the ringing of the bell.  “Unfortunately, that’s my bell.  Kara meeting you has been an exceptional experience.  I feel like I’ve only scratched the surface of who you really are.”

Shaking her head as she stood, Kara said, “No, I’m pretty simple.  There’s not that much to me.”

“That’s an act.  You keep people at bay with it, but it’s an act.  I have my own walls, so I understand.  I’m not yet sure who you really are, Kara, but I bet you’re someone worth getting to know.”

As Lena began to walk away, Kara called after her, “Maybe you should find out.”

Stopping and turning with a smile, Lena said, “Maybe I should.”  Then she nodded and continued on to the next table.

 

<><> 

 

There were several more rounds of table switches before everyone was done for the evening.  Alex was waiting near the exit, checking work alerts on her phone, when an excited voice got her attention.

“Alex!”  Eyes wide, Kara grabbed her sister by the upper arm and hurried her out the exit.

“Hey, hey!”  Alex tugged her arm back as soon as they reached the sidewalk.  “Arms work better with shoulders inside sockets.  Is there a situation?”

“Situation?”  Brows pressed together, Kara leaned closer to her sister before stepping away.  “Oh, a situation.  No, I’m just excited.  I met some really great women.”

“Ah, yeah, me too.” 

Alex began to make her way along the street that was peppered with people on this early evening as Kara took a few quick strides and caught up.

“Yeah?”  A bright smile on her face, Kara nudged her sister.  “Do I get to say, ‘I told you so.’ now?”

“I don’t even care if you do.  I already sent off my top two picks to the email list to see if I get a match.”

“Top two?”  With a slight frown, Kara shook her head.  “You’re allowed to pick three.”

Alex shrugged.  “I really liked two of them.  I have a good feeling about them.”

“So you only picked two?”

“Well … I might have put one of them down twice.”

“Alex.”  Throwing an arm over her sister’s shoulder, Kara grinned.  “So you **really** liked one of them?”

“Am I a bad person if I flipped a coin?”

“Alex!”  Laughing, Kara said, “You’re never a bad person, but don’t decide who to propose to by flipping a coin, okay?”

“Promise.”

“So, tell me about them.”

“Well, they’re both brilliant, and beautiful, and sexy, and amazing.  Maggie was amazing.  I’m not settling, Kara.  I want amazing.  I deserve amazing.”  Hesitating, Alex looked up at her sister, “I deserve amazing, don’t I?”

“Of course, you do.  You are amazing, so you deserve amazing.  What else?”

“God, I don’t know, Kara.  I only had five minutes,  What can you find out in five minutes?”

“Apparently enough to set up two possible dates and maybe even two dates with the same woman.”

“Ugh.”  Alex slumped against her sister.  “I’m so desperate.  Was that pathetic?”

“Nah, it’s fine.  I met two I really liked too and one woman who was a dog walker and had all these pictures of her dogs.  She said she’d let me help her if I wanted, so I put her down too.”

“Oh, yeah.  I remember the dog walker lady.”  Pushing away from Kara, Alex eyed her.  “You put down some lady for a date so you could help her at work?”

“With dogs, Alex, with dogs.”

Hands held up, Alex chuckled.  “Right, what was I thinking.”

“Apparently, you weren’t.  You haven’t even thanked me for helping to bring you together with two amazing women.”

“I apologize.  As a reward for pulling me out of my funk and bringing me to meet some amazing women, I’m going to buy you all the ice cream you can eat.”

Kara stopped suddenly and stood ramrod straight until her sister turned back to look at her.  “Alex, don’t tease me like that.”

With a smile, Alex put her arm over Kara’s shoulder and encouraged the blonde to start walking again.  “It’s not a joke, Kara.  There’s a new ice cream place downtown that opened last week.  They serve something called The Kitchen Sink.  It’s three bananas, three brownies, one scoop of each of the forty-two flavors of ice cream that they serve, hot fudge, caramel, marshmallow, nuts, whip cream, and a handful of cherries.”  Alex had to tug her open-mouthed sister to get Kara walking again.  “It’s meant to be shared by a team of people after a sports game or something, but I bet we could split it.”

Nodding vigorously, Kara grinned and held up a finger.  “Alex, just one thing though.”

“Yes, I’ll eat the bananas.”

Putting her head on her sister’s shoulder, Kara said, “You’re the best big sister in any galaxy, and I should know.”

 

<><> 

 

Sliding onto the barstool next to Lena, Sam held up a finger to the bartender.  “Martini, dry, please.”  Turning, she examined Lena’s face.  “You’re smiling.  Are you smiling?  I think you’re smiling.”

Taking a sip from her tumbler, Lena regarded Sam over the lip of the glass before replying, “I haven’t the foggiest what you mean.”

“Aha!”  Sam pointed at her friend.  “You met someone.  Spill.  Tell me everything.”

“Samantha, I met dozens of people.  You met dozens of people.”

“Oh, you know what I mean.  What was she like?”

Shrugging, Lena allowed a smile to curl one side of her face.  “Which one?”

“Which one?”  After a moment of considering, Sam rose slightly from her seat with obvious excitement.  “You met more than one someone that you liked?  Oh, my God, Lena!”

“Shhh.”  Waving at her friend, Lena looked around.  “We’re in public, control yourself.”

“Nobody cares.”

“I care.  You never know where you’ll find a paparazzi.  Now let’s just drink our drinks and remain in control.”

Taking her drink, Sam passed cash with a considerable tip to the bartender before turning to Lena again.  “Were you this boring in college?”

“No, I was fourteen in college.  I was considerably more boring.  You’re catching me in my wild days.  Consider yourself lucky.”

“Good God.”  Taking a hefty swallow of her martini, Sam said, “I had a toddler when I was in college and still managed to have a good time.  I think you might be hopeless.  Maybe you should give up on dating.”

“No thank you.”

“Aha!”

“Shhhh!”

“Aha,” Sam whispered.  “I knew it.  I knew you met someone.”

“Fine, you’re so damn clever,” Lena whispered back.  “I met two women I found particularly compelling, but that doesn’t mean they felt the same way.  I might have scared one of them off.”

“Did you tell her your last name and go on and on about your brother’s murder spree?”

Lena frowned.  “No.” 

“Did you catch her checking out your boobs?”

“Well, yes but—”

“You’re fine,” Sam said with a dismissive hand wave as she sipped her drink.  “What about the other one?”

“We talked science.  She’s brilliant.”

“Oh, right up your alley.  Do you plan to take her on a date to the secret lab in the basement of L-Corp?” Sam asked with a laugh.

Knocking back her whiskey, Lena said, “Finish your drink and let’s go.”  She stood and walked away.

“Hey, I—”

Toothpick of olives in one hand, Sam finished her drink quickly before eating the olives and then hurrying after Lena.  She caught the other woman at the door.  “What did I say?”

“Nothing.”

“Was it the secret lab joke?  I apologize.  I know you don’t really have a secret lab in the basement of L-Corp.”  When Lena just glared at her, Sam’s eyes widened, and she said, “Do you really have a secret lab in the basement of L-Corp?”

“You’ll find out when I’m experimenting on you.”

“Ouch.  I guess I deserved that.”

“Hmmm.”  They walked along the street in relative quiet for a few moments.  “So, did you meet anyone fabulous?”

“I met a few women I liked, but I’m not as picky as you.”

“I’m not picky.  I’m discerning.”

“If you get any more discerning, Lena, you’re going to have to add hermit to your resume.”  Sam ignored Lena’s glare and kept speaking.  “I met one or two women I really liked.  They were cute, smart, and they were interested.”

“How could you tell?”

“Oh, I could tell.”  Sam laughed.  “I can always tell.”

“I can never tell.  Maybe people aren’t interested.”

“Lena, people are always interested.  Women adore you.  Women hit on you all the time.”

“What women, when?”

Sam sighed.  “You just might be hopeless.”

“No.  Today I met two women I liked, so I’m not accepting hopeless.  If neither of them are interested in dating me, I’ll spend my weekends locked in my secret lab underneath L-Corp either trying to cure cancer or trying to overthrow the government.”

Looping her arm through Lena’s, Sam said, “Hey, the way things are going right now, both of those sound like humanitarian goals.”


	2. You've Got Email

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone gets emails, and communication continues to suck. We wouldn't have a fic if it didn't.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is such a short chapter. I lost half of it due to user error (learn something new every day), and I wanted to get this chapter out this week. The first set of dates will come in the next chapter

Running down the hallway, her phone in her hand, Kara burst wide-eyed into Alex’s living room.  “Alex!”

“Oh, my God.”  As her sister moved toward her at above human speed, Alex braced for impact.

As Kara connected with Alex, wrapping her sister in a hug, the momentum carried them both into the couch.  The couch flipped over onto its back from the force.  The sisters continued over the back of the couch, onto the floor, rolling twice with Alex landing on top.

“Ugh.”

“Alex, guess what?”

“The emergency room is open 24/7?”

“No.  Well, yes, but that’s not what I meant.  I got a match.”  She held her phone up in the air behind her sister’s head.

“Congratulations.  I got a hernia.”

“Oh, sorry.”  Standing, Kara lifted Alex and placed the other woman onto her feet.  “Better?”

Alex stretched out her shoulders and then her back, eyeing her sister warily.  “Apparently, I’ll survive, no thanks to you.  You’re especially excitable.” 

“I said I was sorry.  It was an accident, the knocking you over part.”

“Uh-huh.”  Alex frowned and walked over to the couch, struggling to push it up.  

“Here, let me.”  Effortlessly, Kara flipped the couch upright.

“Thanks.  Now, why did you just do an impromptu rendition of the Running of the Bulls, you being the bulls in this little drama?”

“Oh, I got a match, matches actually.”  She held her phone out, shaking it around.

“Which means what exactly?”

“I got my email from the speed dating company with my matches from the event.”  Kara held up three fingers.  “Isn’t that exciting?”

Alex stood up straight.  “Those are out already?”

Kara smiled.  “Have you checked your email?”

“No, I uh … No.”

“Well, check it, check it!”  She gave her sister a gentle shake by the shoulder.

“Easy there.  I’m still recovering from your last round of affection.”  Pulling her phone out of her pocket, Alex opened her personal email as she sat on the couch.

Sitting next to her sister, Kara lasted almost a minute, her legs jittering with poorly contained excitement, before she asked, “Well?”

“Well, they contacted me.”

“And?”

“And …” Alex nodded.

“Oh, Rao!”  Tossing her head back hard enough that the couch rocked slightly, Kara groaned.  “Just tell me already, Alex.  You’re killing me.”

“Dramatic much?”

Rolling her head to the side to glare at her sister, Kara said, “I’m one of two survivors of my entire species.  This is nothing.”  When Alex stared back with little expression, Kara added, “I’ll pout.”

“All right, all right … blackmailer.”  She ignored her sister’s gasp of indignation and nodded.  “I got matched.”

Kara was instantly sitting upright.  “Who!?  Which one!?”

Smiling, Alex held up two fingers.

“Alex!”  Kara threw her arms wide and leaned toward her sister.

“No!”  Alex held out her hand between herself and Kara, leaning far away.  “Please, I’m going to be bruised from the last time.  Don’t put me out on disability with your hugs.  Don’t make me put that on a form.”

Nodding and with an awkward smile, Kara continued to hold her arms open.  “A gentle hug?”

“I’m always up for those,” Alex said as she leaned into her sister’s embrace.

“Alex, this is so good.  I’m going on some dates, and you’re getting back out there.  I bet we’re both going to meet someone special.”

Alex pulled away.  “You think?”

“I believe, and hope is a powerful tool.  One of these women is going to be that special someone for you.  You take your time and figure it out.”

“Time is the problem.  I only have one date with each of them.”

“Who says?”  Kara shrugged.  “If the dates go well, why can’t you date them both for a while until you figure out who you like?  No reason to commit after one date, right?”

“I … guess not.”

“Great.”  Smiling, Kara leaped to her feet.  “Is it okay if I use your laptop?”

“Sure.  What are you up to?”

“Well, I’ve got those email addresses the speed dating place sent me for each of the women, the temp addresses, and I want to reach out to them right away.  You know, see about setting up some dates.  You think J’onn could cover for me if there were an emergency?”

“It would depend on the emergency.  A big alien fight downtown, yes.  Cadmus peeking their head out of hiding …” Alex scrunched up her face.

“Well, of course, I’d cancel a date for Cadmus.  But maybe, just maybe, if we stay very quiet for the next week or so, Cadmus will too.”

“Do you really believe that?”

Smiling as she backed toward Alex’s bedroom, Kara said, “I have hope.”

 

<><> 

 

It was late Saturday morning, and Lena sat typing on her laptop, a cup of coffee on the table.  She’d been up since 6:00 AM, had done a quick workout, showered, grabbed a light breakfast, checked the markets - foreign and domestic - and was now going through work emails.  It was the normal weekend routine for the young Luthor.  When her cellphone buzzed on the couch next to her, Lena glanced over at it.  Raising an eyebrow at the familiar caller, she swiped her finger across the screen to answer and put it on speaker.  “Good morning, Sam.  How’s Ruby?”

_“Fine.  Have you checked your email yet?”_

Picking up her coffee mug and taking a sip, Lena replaced it on the table as she said, “I’m doing so right now.”

_“And?”_

“And it’s the usual amount of traffic.  Oh, when you get a chance, I sent you an updated report on my cost estimates for the R&D Q3 costs for the National City division.  I’d like your feedback on the numbers.”  Lena clicked a few keys, finishing an email and hitting send.  “It can wait until Monday morning if you’re busy with Ruby.”

_“Are you working?”_

“Have you met me?”

 _“Right.  Okay, let me start this conversation again.  Have you checked your **personal** email yet today?_ ”

“No.  Business before pleasure, Samantha.  You know my motto.”

_“I thought it as ‘no drinking before three or noon on a workday and lots of it after five’.”_

Lena chuckled.  “Write that out in Latin, and I think you have the Luthor family motto.  Did you just call to remind me that I work and drink too much, or did you want something?”

_“I want you to check your personal email.  It’s important.”_

“It can’t be too important.  The only people who ever email me on my personal email are you and my mother.  You’re more likely to call me, as seen at this moment, and I’m avoiding my mother because … Well, you’ve met her.”

 _“Once which was twice too often.”_  Sam’s breath was released in a shudder.   _“There’s someone else who emails you there.”_

“Who?”

 _“The people from that speed dating event.  They sent out emails early this morning.  I got my matches.  I bet you got yours.”_  After a few moments of silence, Sam said, _“Lena?”_

“Yes, I’m here.”

_“Are you all right?”_

“Certainly, I just need to get back to work.  I’ll call you later, Sam.  I hope you and Ruby—”

_“Oh, no, you don’t.  Don’t you hang up on me until you check your email.”_

“Samantha,” Lena sighed.

_“Lena.  You know, it’s not fair that you don’t have a longer first name.  Don’t make me break out your middle name.”_

“I’m not Ruby, you know.”

_“Then don’t act like a child.  Just check it, and I’ll let you get back to work.”_

“You’re being a bully.”

_“And you’re being pathetic.  I know you.  If I don’t get on your case about this, you’ll leave that message unopened for two weeks.  By the time you open it, the women in question will have moved on with their lives.  So for your sake, the sake of the other women, and my blood pressure, just open the damn email.”_

“Fine.”  Lena opened another browser, pulling up her private email.  “I’m doing this under protest.”

_“Is that where Ruby got that phrase?  My God, you’re a bad influence.”_

“You’re welcome.”  Lena sat with her personal email open, blinking as her cursor sat over an unopened email.

After several moments, Sam said, _“Well?”_

“Well, I got an email.”

_“What does it say?”_

“I haven’t opened it.”

_“Forward it to me.”_

“Ha!  No.”

_“Then open it already.  Come on, Lena.  You’ve stared down gunmen without blinking.  I’ve watched you take on the entire L-Corp Board of Directors.  This is just an email.  Click on it.”_

“Tyrant,” Lena grumbled as she clicked.  “Oh.”

_“Oh?  What, oh?  What does it say?  What did you get?  Who did you match with?  Argh!  Tell me already!”_

“Patience is a virtue.”  Lena’s voice was sing-songy.

_“I’ll take things Lena knows nothing about for $1,000, Alex.”_

“I don’t understand.”

_“It’s a Jeopardy joke.  You know, the game show.”_

“Ah.”  Lena nodded.  “I watched that two or three times as a child until my mother caught me.”

_“What did Lillian do?”_

“She just said, ‘No’ and turned off the television.  Then she gave me a physics book.”

_“Fun lady.  So, you got a match, matches?”_

“Yes, matches.”

_“Yes!  I knew it!  Who did you match?  What are their names?”_

“Why don’t I just blind copy you in when I email them?”

_“Really?”_

Shaking her head, Lena closed her personal email.  “Not really.  Sam, I have work to do.  I’ll deal with this later in the day.”

_“Lena, if you tell me about your dates, I’ll tell you about mine.”_

Brows furrowing, Lena said, “Wait, are you telling me that if I don’t tell you about the women I’ll be going out with, you’re going to withhold information on the women you’ll be going out with also?”

 _“Yes.”_ The smile was obvious in Sam’s voice.

“Promise?”  Lena smirked.  “Goodbye, Samantha.”

_“Lena, wait—”_

Hanging up the phone, Lena switched it to mute and tossed it further away from her on the couch.  “Now let’s hope she keeps her promise so I can get some work done.”

 

<><> 

 

Leaning against Vasquez’s desk at the DEO, Kara sat flipping through pictures on her phone and showing them to the agent.  Kara smiled brightly as image after image slid by.  Agent Vasquez, on the other hand, held a thinly veiled professional look on her face as she attempted to return to her screens and monitor the city.  Each time, seconds after she did so, a phone was excitedly thrust between her and her job, and the voice of a perky superhero raised in ignorant joy.

 “This is Jekyll.  She’s a Mudi.  She has the most beautiful eyes.  She is super affectionate and has lots of energy.  This is King.  He’s a Toy Spaniel.  He’s got the cutest little face.  Doesn’t he have the cutest little face?  He’s a shy boy, but he warmed up to me by the end of the day.”  Kara pulled her phone close again, smiling at it before scrolling through a few pictures and pushing it between Agent Vasquez and her monitor.  “Oh, this is Babootz.  Babootz is a Kamondor which kind of looks like a walking mop with a nose.”  Kara laughed.  “Okay, don’t tell anyone, but I’m still not sure it Babootz is a boy or a girl.”  She bit her lip, shrugged and used her thumb to scroll through more photos.  “This is Janette.  She’s a Blue Lacy.  Look how beautiful she is.  And this is Max.  He’s a Shar-Pei.  Look at all his little wrinkles.  Aren’t they adorable?  Who knew wrinkles could be so cute?”

Catching the gaze of Agent Danvers who had just entered the room, Agent Vasquez flashed several quick hand signals down below Supergirl’s visions … not that it likely would have mattered.  

Brows furrowed, Agent Danvers joined the other two women.  “Supergirl, Agent Vasquez, what’s, um, going on?”

Supergirl turned and held out her phone to her sister.  “I was just showing Susan my new pictures.”

“Oh.”  Eyes wide as she nodded, Agent Danvers said, “The dog pictures.”

“I can start over if you want to see them again.”  At inhuman speed, Supergirl began to scroll backward through the photos.

“Ummm.”  Sharing a look of panic with Agent Vasquez, Agent Danvers placed a hand on her sister’s arm.  “Supergirl, did you know there are doughnuts in the break room?”

“Doughnuts?”

“Doughnuts,” Agent Danvers repeated.  “There are a bunch of agents in there eating them right now and—”

“There are agents in there eating the doughnuts?”  Face serious, Supergirl pushed off the desk as she headed toward the break room.  “Excuse me.”

Agent Vasquez waited until Supergirl had disappeared from sight to breathe a sigh of relief.  “You’re my hero, ma’am.  I’m not exaggerating.”

Agent Danvers chuckled.  “I thought you were exaggerating when you signaled that there was an agent in mortal danger and in need of backup, though mortal danger might have been a bit much, don’t you think, Agent?”

“No, ma’am.  I was ready to eat my gun.”

Alex winced.  “That bad, huh?”

“This is the third time, ma’am, the third time I’ve seen the photos.  I like dogs.  I love dogs, but I think she’s bored.  We all are.  Where the hell is Cadmus when you need them?”

“Okay, don’t say that out loud but yeah.  It has been pretty quiet lately.  Kara had a date with her dogwalker lady, and no one attacked to interrupt it.  We both have dates lined up this weekend.”

“You’re dating?”  When Alex shot her a look, Agent Vasquez held her hands up at shoulder level.  “That’s a good thing.  I’m happy for you.  Is she anyone I know?”

“I doubt it.”

“Agent Danvers.”  Looking around, Vasquez lowered her voice to not much above a whisper.  “Alex, even in liberal California, we swim in a fairly small pool here.  Most likely I’ve either dated her or I know someone who’s dated her.  What’s her name?”

Alex seemed to consider that then nodded.  “Lena.”

With a head shake, Vasquez asked, “Last name?”

Alex shrugged, obviously going for casual but breaking eye contact.  “I don’t know yet.”

“ **You** don’t know?  Miss ‘background check before breakfast’ doesn’t know this woman’s last name?  Alex, you could have found out by now even if she were in the Witness Protection program.  What’s the holdup?”

With a little smile, Alex said, “I like this woman.  I don’t want to dig into her personal life.  She seems like a private person, so I’m giving her that privacy.  We talk about her work, about the science and technology sides of things a lot, but she doesn’t seem ready to open up about other aspects of her life.  There’s definitely something going on with her family.  Even in email, I can get that.”

“Okay, so when you say talk …”

“Mostly email, but we’ve had a few short phone conversations.  I think her work hours may be worse than mine.”

“How is that possible?”

“Apparently, it’s possible.  She’s a CEO at some technology firm here in the city.  She and a friend had a startup a few years back.  I don’t know what happened with her and her business partner, but they went their separate ways.  The way she doesn’t say makes me think it was family drama.  Anyway, she came out here and started another business.  I think it’s doing pretty well.”

“So she’s driven, smart.”

“Ugh.”  Alex sat down on Vasquez’s desk, eyes closed.  “She’s a genius.  I’m fine talking medicine and biology with her, but she goes off on these engineering tangents, and I have to admit, she’s lost me a few times.”

“An engineer, huh?”

Alex held up her fingers.  “Two Doctorates from MIT.”

“She sounds like a total tech head.”

“I bet she’d love to get her hands on our systems.”

Leaning protectively over her keyboard, Vasquez placed a hand over each of her monitors.

Alex laughed.  “Oh, relax.  I don’t bring dates back to the DEO.  You won’t see her here.”

Vasquez looked like she was about to say something but instead just straightened her uniform.  “I don’t know if I’m glad or disappointed.  I’d like to meet this mystery woman.”

“Maybe one day if things go well.  Who knows?  I expect we’ll be friends no matter what.  We have a lot in common.”

“Good luck, Agent Danvers.”  Vasquez turned her full attention to her system again but was quickly turning back.  “Wait, you said you had dates.  Did I misunderstand or ...”

Rubbing the back of her neck, Alex smiled.  “The other woman is great too, more than great, amazing.  She’s funny, quick-witted, beautiful, and a mom.”

“Oh.”  Vasquez nodded.  “Wow, that’s a lot.  I know that was an issue with your last relationship, but are you ready to move onto a relationship where that situation already exists?”

Alex took a moment before replying, “I don’t know, but I do know I don’t want to end up in another serious relationship where it isn’t a possibility.  I know I like this woman.  I like everything I’ve learned about her so far.  If things go well and I meet her kid down the line, that’s a big responsibility.”

“Alex, you’ve helped save the world, so you’ve helped save her kid’s life.  When it comes to seriously responsibilities, you’ve got a pretty good track record.  This woman and her kid would be lucky to have Alex Danvers in their lives.”

Smile growing, Alex clasped Vasquez’s shoulder.  “Thanks.”

“Hey, just don’t go running off on us to join the PTA and bake cupcakes.”

“Did someone say cupcakes?”  Supergirl walked back into the room, her mouth half-filled with food and a doughnut in one hand.

“Uh ...”  Looking around quickly, Vasquez’s gaze fell on someone who was just arriving for duty.  “It was Winn.  He also mentioned that he hasn’t seen your pictures yet.”

Supergirl smiled broadly.  “Winn.”

“Yeah?”

She unlocked her phone, walking over to join him.  “I’ve got something to show you.”

Clapping Vasquez on the back, Alex said, “Clever but evil.  Are you sure you’re not a member of Cadmus?”

Turning back to her computer, Vasquez began to type as she mumbled, “Yes, but if I have to look at those pictures again, I might defect.”


	3. First Dates Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The girls go on their first dates. Still, no one knows they're all matched with each other.

Alex rushed around her apartment preparing for her date.  As she finished drying her hair, she tossed the towel onto the bed and grabbed the light-blue checkered shirt out of her closet, pulling it on and buttoning the sleeves.  She clumsily buttoned the shirt front with one hand while she pulled jeans off a hanger.  Alex pulled on the jeans, tucking in her shirt and closing the pants, then went through the ties before picking out a dark gray one.  She was tying it around her neck when her phone rang.

“Fuck.  How late am I?”  She grabbed the phone, breathing a sigh of relief as she answered and put it on speaker, tossing it on her bed.  “Hey, Kara.  What do you need?  I’m kind of in a hurry.”

 _“I need your help!”_   There was a hint of panic in Kara’s voice.

Her tie looped twice around itself in preparation for tying, Alex froze and turned her back on her reflection.  “What’s wrong?”

_“I can’t decide what to wear for my date.”_

“Jesus fucking Christ,” Alex muttered as she turned back around and finished tying her tie.  “Kara, that is not an emergency!”

_“It’s a fashion emergency!”_

“Then call your boss!  You work for a fucking fashion magazine.”

_“Alex, please!”_

With a heavy sigh, Alex tugged the gray blazer free from the hanger in her closet.  “Do quick changes and send me pictures.”

_“Yeah!”_

Dropping the blazer on her bed and tossing the towel over the bedpost to dry, Alex grabbed a pair of socks and sat on the mattress, pulling them on.  She was tying her shoelaces as pictures started to appear on her phone.

_“Okay, look at those and let me know what you think.  I have more clothes if none of those work.”_

“Where are you going tonight?”

_“Out.”_

“Well, I should hope so.  A first date is not a good choice to stay in.  Where are you two going on your date?”

_“Well, we’re going out to eat and—”_

“You already ate, right?”

_“No.”_

“Kara,” Alex said with a note of warning in her voice, “you always need to eat before you go out to eat.  You know how you get.”

_“I know, Alex, but this is different.  She says she has a huge appetite.”_

“A huge human appetite.”

_“I know.  I know, but we’ve been talking about food a lot.  She’s a big foodie, and she promised me she has a huge appetite.  She says she usually grabs something to eat before she goes out to eat.”_

“Huh.”  Brows furrowed, Alex asked, “And she’s human?”

_“Born and bred fairly local unless she just isn’t ready to reveal that yet.  It doesn’t matter either way.  We both said we’d bring our appetites, and she promised me I wouldn’t be sorry.  I think it may be a buffet or something.”_

A brush in her hair, Alex stopped mid-motion.  “God, Kara, don’t put some poor restaurant owner out of business.”

There was the breezy sound of Kara’s laugh.  _“I won’t.  Hey, this woman is pretty great.  We’ve been chatting all week.  If she can keep up with me foodwise, is the first date too early to pop the question?”_

“I’m honestly not sure right now.”  After finishing brushing her hair into place, Alex dropped onto the bed and picked up her phone.  “Did she say anything about how to dress?”

_“Casually.”_

Alex nodded as she scrolled through the pictures.  A few were sundresses, but most were pants and button downs with rolled up sleeves.  Kara’s hair was different in several of the photos.

“You took the time to do your hair in the pictures?”

_“It only takes like a second, two if I have to be careful with a fancy hair piece.  So, what do you think?”_

“Well, what do you feel the most comfortable in?”

There was a pause, and then Kara said, _“Well, I like dresses and pants.  Both are good for me, but if we’re going on an eating fest, I think I’m feeling more like pants and a shirt.  Plus, I’m going to be taking notes for an article.”_

“Your date is an assignment?”

Laughter rode along the line.  _“Rao, I wish.  Then I could get paid to … Wait, do you think I could claim my food as a business expense?”_

“That was not what I thought you were going to say you wanted to get paid to do.”

_“What did you think I was going to say?”_

“Uh … never mind.  So, the answer to your question is no.  The way you eat, there is no way your boss is covering that.”

_“Oh, true.  What if it’s a buffet?”_

“I … sure if it’s a buffet,” Alex begrudgingly admitted.  “Just leave something for everyone else.”

_“Wow, imagine if I were like the secret food taster that got paid to drive around the city and eat and then write articles on it.”_

“Kara, focus.”  Alex stood and pulled on her jacket.  “I’ve probably got one minute before my date shows up and picks me up.”

_“Sorry.  Pants.”_

“Thank you.”  Picking up her phone, Alex scrolled through the photos deleting the dresses.  She compared a few options, deleting one when she preferred another.  She did this until she got down to one picture which she sent back to Kara.  “This is the outfit.  You’re going to look great.”

_“You’re the best.”_

“That’s true.  Have a good date.”

_“You too.  Call me later?”_

“Maybe.  We’ll see how late I’m out.”

_“Well, you’ll be home tonight, right?”_

Alex’s phone buzzed signaling an incoming call from Lena.  “Kara, she’s calling me.  Love you. Later.”

 _“Love you too!”_ As her sister hung up, Kara looked at the image Alex had sent back and smiled.  “Perfect.”  She dressed quickly in tan pants with a brown belt and a blue shirt with a tan collar and sleeves with tan interiors which showed when you rolled them up.  Her hair was done with casual curls in a ponytail, and she was tying the laces on her sneakers when her phone signaled an incoming text.

Sam: “I’m downstairs. Should I come up?”

Smiling, Kara grabbed her purse and was out the door, down the stairs to the first floor, and walking out onto the street before her screen had even dimmed.  She smiled at the gray SUV that sat in front of her apartment, waving as she moved into the driver’s view.

A surprised look on her face, Sam got out of the vehicle and walked around front to meet Kara on the sidewalk.  She was wearing gray slacks, a white shirt, a blue tie, a maroon vest, and a gray coat that was open and hung down to mid-knee.  “Oh, hey, great timing.  I just got here and sent you a text.”

“Yeah, I saw it.”  Kara held her phone up and shrugged.  She lifted her chin toward Sam.  “That’s what you mean when you say casual?”

“What?”  Sam looked down at herself and chuckled.  “Oh, God no.  I’d meant to change into jeans.  These are work clothes.  I got stuck late at the office, which is such a normal thing I don’t know why I even consider it late anymore.  I made it home to give my kid a kiss and had to turn around and leave again.  By the way, Ruby says hi.”

Biting her lower lip and the smile forming there, Kara’s held her elbow while she waved awkwardly with her other hand.

“It was this or be late, but I’ll shed the jacket and tie, maybe even the vest.  We won’t need it where we’re going.”

“You’ll look great either way.”  Kara’s hands fidgeted slightly.  “So, exactly where are we going?”

“It’s a surprise, and you look beautiful.”  Sam stepped closer, smiling, and when Kara smiled back she planted a gentle kiss on Kara’s cheek, stepping away and asking, “Was that okay?”

“Definitely,” Kara said ducking her head a little bit and pushing up her glasses.

“You hungry?” 

“Also definitely,” Kara replied with a laugh that released a bit of tension.

“Me too.”  Sam pulled the passenger door open and held it for Kara.  “I made sure my nanny had fed my growing pre-teen before I left, and I was tempted to grab a snack, but I didn’t.  I hope you appreciate how much that means I like you.”

Nodding vigorously, Kara replied, “I didn’t eat either.  My sister gave me a hard time about it and everything.”

“Heh, so did Ruby.”  As Kara got in, Sam closed the door and walked around, getting into the driver’s side.  “The people who love us know what grumps we can be when we don’t get our eight square meals a day, right?”

Wide-eyed, Kara said, “Eight square meals a day?”

With a smile, Sam started the SUV.  “I’m joking.  That’s a joke.”  She signaled and checked traffic as she pulled out onto the road and mumbled, “Mostly.”

Kara just smiled to herself.

The two drove and chatted for a while as they made their way to nearby San Diego.  Kara filled Sam in on an article she was writing about aliens who were being taken in by human scams.  It was both meant as a ‘buyer beware’ piece for the aliens and to show the human readers that aliens coming here weren’t super-powered creatures with every advantage, they were lost refugees in need of help.  Sam filled Kara in on some corporate takeover they were in the middle of doing without naming the names of anyone involved.  She did say it was finally going well, and it promised to save the jobs of the company being bought out and add some new ones to her company and National City.

“Can I asked you a question?”

Sam nodded as she took the 19th Street exit from the San Diego Freeway.

“Okay, well when you first started talking about your work, I thought it was a little mom and pop organization.  Now it sounds a lot bigger.  If I heard the name of the place you worked, would I know it?”

Eyeing Kara cautiously, Sam replied, “Yes.”

“Okay, so it’s a big business in the National City area.”

“It is a big business,” Sam agreed, a little smile growing on her face as she drove along the street, “but I guess it’s also a mom and pop business if you consider my friend’s mom and pop.  It’s family owned.”

“Huh.  Care to share the name with me?”

“Not in the middle of this merger, Kara.”  Sam cast a glance at Kara, smiling.  “No offense, but especially with you being a reporter, I need to be careful here.  Normally, I wouldn’t have said anything, but with us trying to get to know each other, I wanted to tell you something about how my day was going.”

“You know I’m not that kind of reporter, right?  I don’t cover the business sector.”

“I know, but people’s jobs are on the line.  It’s not that I don’t trust you, but I have to protect our employees first.”

“You’re right, of course.”  Kara nodded.  “I apologize if that made it sound like I was pressuring you to tell me anything.  I am a reporter, so I’m curious by nature, but I want to know more about you.  I respect you wanting to protect your company.”

“Thanks.  We’re almost there.”  Sam turned left onto Market Street.  “Hey, this time next week the merger will be over, and I can speak freely.  My work hours should also return to crazy instead of insane.  That will be nice, you know, for dating and stuff.”

Kara smiled.  “And stuff.”

They drove five blocks down to The Quartyard.  There, around a green, were parked several box truck-like vehicles.  A few were silver, but there were various other colors and most had a name on the side.

Perking up in her seat as they drove by and pulled into a parking space, her head swiveling one way and then the other even as her nostrils flared in an attempt to pull in all of the scents, Kara asked, “What is this?”

“Food Truck Friday,” Sam replied casually, a grin tugging at the corner of her lips.

“I’m sorry, what!?”  Kara tried to get out of her seat, nearly accidentally ripping her seatbelt out before remembering it was there and unbuckling.  She turned in her seat to look at the sea of vehicles laden with cooking food.  “You mean all those food trucks are just … here?”

“Yup, on Fridays in the summer.  You didn’t know that?”

“Um, am I sleeping in a tent on the green over there?”  Kara held out her arm to the area surrounded by the food trucks.  “No, I didn’t know that.  How did I not know that?  I am so disappointed in me right now.  I’d ground myself, but that would mean no food truck food, and there is no way that’s not happening.”

Laughing, Sam leaned in and kissed Kara’s cheek again, smile growing at Kara’s blush.  “You’re adorable.”  She reached back, grabbing a large bag from the backseat before unlocking the door and getting out.  She didn’t have to wait for Kara to meet her on the other side of the SUV.  “So, I take it I made a good choice?”

Flashing a smile as she nodded, Kara said, “I’ll race you to the food.”

“Please.  You wouldn’t stand a chance.”  Sam smiled, checking both directions before cocking her head across the street.  “I’ve trampled … okay, not cuter women but definitely stronger women over food.”

“I doubt that,” Kara mumbled as Sam took off at a trot and she followed quickly, coming up with a grin to Sam’s side.

There were nearly two dozen food carts in the area with various cuisine from different cultures.  They were parked in an L-shape around a large square where a band was warming up, and people were sprawled out on the grass.  Kara and Sam walked back and forth a few times, nearly overcome by the choices, before Sam grabbed Kara by the hand and pulled her down to one corner.

“So, this is my plan when everything seems too good, and I can’t decide.  I start on one side and just keep eating until I have to tap out.”

Eyes wide, Kara said, “You just eat until you can’t eat?”

Sam shrugged.  “Pretty much.”  She patted the bag she had grabbed from the back seat.  “I’ve got a blanket and sunblock if you need it.  I don’t burn, and we can hang out and listen to music, eat, talk, and get to know each other better.  You mentioned doing an article if the food place had a cool atmosphere and …”  Sam held a hand palm up.  “What do you think?”

“What do I think?”  Taking Sam’s hand in hers, Kara asked, “Sam, have you ever been married?”

“Oh, um, no.  You see, when I got pregnant with Rubes—”

Heading toward the area of the cart where you place orders, Kara tugged Sam along with her as she smiled and said, “Well, the night is young.  Want some tacos?”

“Um.”  Sam laughed.  “I’ve never met a taco I didn’t like.”

Kara held up two fingers to the man at the truck.  “Two tacos with … everything?” she added looking back at Sam who nodded.  “Everything.”

“Hard or soft?  Chicken, beef, or fish?” the man asked.

When Kara looked at her, Sam said, “It’s food, Kara.  There is no wrong answer.”

“That was the best answer I’ve ever heard,” Kara said with a wistful sigh before looking at the man.  “Surprise us?”

“Vegetarian?” he asked.

“Not vegetarian,” Sam and Kara said together, making the man step back with his arms raised in surrender.

Sam and Kara both laughed, but Sam said, “Don’t tell my daughter I said that.  We’re in the ‘arguing over vegetables’ stage, and I don’t need to give her a ‘do as I say, not as I do’ speech.”

“You’re not a growing child.”

“Thank you!”  Sam smiled, leaning an elbow against the counter near Kara.  “I do try and set a good example.  I eat my vegetables at dinner.  I just have cravings for other things, and my pants are still fitting fine.  Don’t out me, okay?”

“Out you?”  Kara pointed back and forth between the two of them.

“Oh, not that.  Ruby and I had the ‘sometimes boys kiss boys and sometimes girls kiss girls’ talk before she started kindergarten.  She knows Mommy has kissed both.  We don’t keep secrets like that between us.”

“What kind of secrets do you keep from her?  I’m sorry, that was probably too forward.”

“Oh, it’s fine.”  Sam waved off Kara’s concern.  “It’s the usual mom stuff.  You know: Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, whether we’ll have enough money for rent and food this month.”  At Kara’s look of concern, Sam said, “That was when I was younger.  Life is good now.  By the way,” she put her hand to her bag, “I’ve got a half-dozen waters in my bag too.  I’m sure we’ll find something else we want to drink, but I hate paying for one bottle of water what I can pay for six at the grocery store.”

Kara smiled.  “You’re such a mom.”

“Hey, I was a mom and a hungry college student first.  I think Ruby was the last kid in her class to get a cellphone.  I told her she didn’t need one until she was doing sports without me there, and that just happened this year.  My salary working for … my new company, whose name I almost said, has gotten much better, so it’s good timing.”

“Well, that’s good.  Teenage girls are expensive.  Does Ruby want every new song she hears?  I remember absolutely loving the music when I first got … to my new family.”

“Ruby’s pretty understanding when it comes to money.  For the longest time, we didn’t have much, but we had each other, and we always said that was a lot.  Now we have a whole house, a car that’s younger than Ruby, and more money at the end of the month than the beginning.  Our biggest expenses, outside of paying for the house, are food and clothes.”

“Ruby likes clothes?”

“She keeps growing,” Sam said with a laugh.  “I think she grew another foot this past year.  You know, like a foot taller, not a third foot.  She only has two feet.  She’s not an alien, like …”  Sam grinned and gestured toward Kara.

Blanching, Kara stood up straight.  “... what?”

“Well, like the people you write about.  We’re just boring humans.”  Sam shrugged.  “Sorry if that’s disappointing.”

“No, I like boring humans.  Some of my best friends are boring humans.  My family are boring humans.  I’m a boring human.  I’m …”  Kara pulled her phone out of her purse.  “I’m going to grab some pictures for my article, okay?”

“Sure.”

Kara took pictures of the food truck, the menu, and the food when it came out.  They had soft-shell beef tacos with everything, and Kara pulled out cash first and paid.  They took their food to the green and set up a blanket, sitting down and enjoying the sunlight, the music, and some more casual conversation.  When they had finished their tacos, both still hungry, Sam was already up and on the move.

“It’s my turn to pay,” she said as she gathered Kara’s empty paper plate and put it on top of her own.  “The next truck had Chinese food.  Any requests?”

“Food?”

“A girl after my own heart,” Sam said with a smile, making her way back to the trucks.

Sam was about ten feet away when Kara turned where she sat.  “Oh, Sam, potstickers!  Potstickers!”

Smiling back at Kara, Sam nodded before continuing on her way.

Pulling out her phone, Kara sent a quick text.

Kara: “Food trucks!”

There was less than a minute before she got a response.

Alex:  “What?”

Kara: “I didn’t expect to hear back from u.  Aren’t u on a date?”

Alex: “Aren’t u on a date?”

Kara: “Good point.  She’s grabbing us more food.”

Kara: “It’s Food Truck Friday!”

Kara took a picture, sending it to her sister.

Alex: “Your date took u there?”

Kara: “I know right?” <heart eyes emoji>

Alex: “I’m still going to be ur maid of honor, right?”

Kara: “Ha!  U free next weekend? <bride emoji>”

Alex: “Going that well?”

Kara sat back for a moment, looking at her phone and smiling.

Kara: “I like her. I think she likes me.”

Alex: “Of course she likes u. Ur awesome.”

Kara: “Ur my sister. U have to say that.”

Alex: “I hated u for the first year I knew u.”

Kara: “True.”

Kara: “It’s early. I don’t know if we’ll go out again.”

Kara: “If the rest of the date is like this I hope so.”

Alex: “Good for u. U deserve happiness.”

Kara: “So do u. Why are u texting with me?”

Kara: “Did something go wrong?”

Alex: “She’s late.”

Alex: “There was something at her work.”

Alex: “She sent me a text but I didn’t see it cause I was in the shower.”

Alex: “She should be here soon.”

Kara: “Oh ok.  I hope u have a great date.”

Alex: “U too. Say hi to my future sister in law.”

Kara: “Ha!!! <rolling on the floor laughing emoji>”

Alex shook her head when her phone signaled a new text.

Lena: “I’m here, Doctor.  My apologies for running so tardy, but I promise you, it will be worth the wait.” 

“Jesus Christ.”  Alex pulled at her collar and checked herself in the mirror again before responding.

Alex: “I’ll be right down.” 

Alex locked up her apartment behind her, pushing the button for the elevator three times within twenty seconds, “Come on, come one,” before abandoning it and running down the stairs to the lobby.  She stopped, fixed her shirt and checked her reflection again, then headed outside where a towncar waited, a man in a black suit standing by the vehicle’s door.  He was tall, obviously fairly muscular and trim underneath the suit and carrying himself well.  He was in his late forties with dark hair and a clean shave that looked as if it had done it within the past hour.  As Alex came out, he looked toward someone inside the car and opened the door.

Wearing a dark-blue off the shoulder shirt with a plunging neckline, a gray skirt, and her hair hanging down, Lena stepped out of the car, smiling.  “Alex.”

“Lena.”  Alex faltered as she looked from Lena to the car to what was obviously a chauffeur then back to Lena again where she managed to get her smile in place.  “Hey.”

“Hey, yourself,” Lena said as she walked over to meet Alex, holding out her arms bent at the elbows at her body, palms up.  “Again, I’m so very sorry for being late.  It’s my work.”

“You don’t have to explain to me,” Alex assured.  “Was it the lab?”

“I wish.  It was my Board of Directors doing what they do best.”

“Which is?”

“Making every aspect of my job ten times more difficult.  They’re just a gaggle of bloody nuisances if you ask me … which you didn’t.  Come on.”  Lena cocked her head to the side and headed back to the car.  “We’re already going to have to cut some corners to get back on schedule.”

Climbing into the car behind Lena, Alex asked, “We have a schedule?”  She pulled back her hand in surprise, and for safety’s sake when the door was closed for her.

“Yes, we have a date and with it comes a schedule.  I do hope you don’t find what I have planned too forward.  I’m not sure you’ll think it first date material.”

“Uh, what exactly are we doing?”

Reaching into a large paper bag at her feet, Lena withdrew a styrofoam container and handed it over to Alex.  “Hungry?”

Alex blinked several times before taking the container.  “Sure.”  She was about to put the container on her lap when Lena opened a tray, much like an airplane tray, from the seatback in front of her. “Thanks.”  As Alex put her food on the table, Lena snapped open a cloth napkin, lying it in Alex’s lap.  “Thanks again.”  Opening her food, Alex’s brow furrowed as she examined the contents.  “Is this from Goody’s?”

“Mhmmm,” Lena hummed her agreement as she set about getting her food laid out.  “You’ve mentioned your love of sushi, and theirs is the best in the area.  I’d planned to have us stop there for dinner, but I was running so late that I just put in our order and had Daniel pick it up before he got me from work.”

“Daniel?”

“My driver.”  Lena pointed toward the front of the car.

Alex followed Lena’s gesture to see the man adjust the mirror until they were able to make eye contact in it, and he nodded.

“Hey, Daniel.”

“Ma’am.”  He gave a small salute before returning the mirror to its earlier position.

“This is great,” Alex said, smiling at Lena who handed over chopsticks.

“I have flatware if you’d rather.”

Alex shook her head.  “Do we have any …” Eyes wide, she stared as Lena popped open a small cooler that sat on the floor between them, lifting out two beers.

Lena popped the cap off of one, handing it over to Alex, before popping the cap on the other.  “Don’t tell my mother I’m drinking beer, especially a domestic.”

Sipping her beer, Alex swallowed and shook her head.  “I don’t even know your mom.”

“Lucky you.”  Pressing on the side of her tray, Lena caused a piece of it to pop out.  She pulled it all the way out to where it rotated and hung like a flap on the side.  When it was halfway out, another piece dropped down from the tray and hung in a U-shape from the circular opening Lena had revealed.  It made a narrow bottom when the beer was placed through the hole.  She lifted an eyebrow at Alex.  “Drink holder.”

“Oh, cool.  You know, my government issue SUV doesn’t have these.”  Alex knocked on the tray top which held sturdy before releasing her own drink holder and sliding her beer inside.  “These are handy.”

“I’d be happy to design them for the government.  I spend too much time traveling around in the back of my cars not to be able to have a good table for a meal or my laptop.  They have three types of USB ports, and eight different electrical plugs to accommodate devices from different countries.”

“Only eight?” Alex asked with a chuckle as she dipped a piece of sushi into one of her sauces.  “Slacker.”

“I know.  I know.”  Lena rolled her eyes.  “I’m discriminating against the nations of Lesotho and Tuvalu by not having type M and type I outlets.  So sue me.  I promise, when my company gets contracts with someone there, I’ll add more outlets.”

“Lesotho and where now?”

“Tuvalu, it’s a Polynesian island in the Pacific about halfway between Australia and Hawaii.  It has a population of just over 10,000 and is a member of the United Nations.”

“It is?”

Lena nodded.

Rubbing the back of her neck, Alex frowned.  “Huh.  I feel like I should know that.”

“How would you know that?  There are 193 members of the United Nations, Alex, and Tuvalu was the 189th.  Nobody knows that.”

“You knew that.”

“Well, yes, but I’m not much fun at parties.”

“Whatever.”  Reaching out, Alex gently squeezed Lena’s forearm.  “I bet you kill it at Trivia Pursuit.”

“That’s a game, right?”

“That’s a joke, right?”

Lena shook her head.  “Two Doctorates by the age of twenty.  I skipped the comedy tour.”

“Right.  Well, it is a game, and if this dating thing continues and you end up at Game Night, no telling my sister you didn’t know what it is.”

“She’s a trivia buff?”

“More a game everything buff.  She’s really into family, friends, and togetherness.  She also travels a lot, some, sometimes.  She’d like to travel more than she does, I guess.  I bet she’d know where Tuvalu is.  She’s a big foodie and she ...”  Watching Lena watch her while she ate, Alex said, “isn’t on this date with us.  Sorry.  I’m not going to talk about my sister anymore tonight.  About the only thing worse than talking about my sister would be talking about my ex.  So, what about you?”

Daintily dipping her piece of sushi, Lena smirked.  “I’m not going to talk about your sister or your ex either.”

“Cute.  I deserved that.”

“You’re fine, Alex.  I’m the one who was late.  You’ve been wonderful about it.  So, tell me about your day.  How were things with the Federal Bureau of Investigation?”

“Pretty quiet, actually, not that I’m complaining.  If the criminals want to mind their manners for a while, that’s fine by me.  I’ve gotten more cataloging and filing done this month than I did in the past year.  Plus, I didn’t have to cancel our date.”

“Neither did I, barely.  Again, I’m so very sorry for keeping you waiting, especially with you looking,” Lena wiped the corners of her mouth with her napkin, her gaze ghosting over Alex and leaving a touch of heat behind, “marvelous.”

Pupils dilating in reaction, Alex said, “You look pretty damn amazing yourself.  You wore that to work?”

“This?”  Lena smiled as she shook her head.  “When it was clear I wasn’t going to be making it out of work at anything near to my scheduled departure time, my assistant was kind enough to run back to my apartment and pick out an outfit for me.  If you like this, I’ll have to pass along your compliments to Jess.”

“Definitely,” Alex said raising her beer.  “My compliments to Jess and to the lovely woman sitting next to me.”

“Why, Dr. Alex, you’re beautiful and charming,” Lena said as she raised her beer in return.

“I’m not the only one.”

They drove for the rest of the trip, which was less than twenty minutes in total, sharing generally pleasant conversation as they finished up their food.  As they exited onto Linda Vista Road in San Diego, Alex looked around.

“Do you know where we’re going yet?”

“No,” Alex said slowly as she watched them pass several restaurants and a place called ‘Escape Room Police’.  As they passed another storefront, Alex read out loud, “San Diego Lapidary Society.”  Then she turned to Lena with a curious expression.

“Lapidary is the cutting, polishing, or engraving of gems.”

“You really do know everything, don’t you?”

Frowning slightly, Lena examined her hands.  “Obnoxious?”

“Actually, it’s kind of hot,” Alex said with an easy smile.

Looking up into Alex’s playful grin, Lena smiled back.

It wasn’t until the car turned left, and Alex saw what was in front of her and had been on their left — Lena’s side of the car — the whole time, that Alex’s face lit up.  “The University of San Diego,” she whispered, licking her lips.  “Is this for …”

Her smile growing bold, Lena quirked up an eyebrow.  “As I said, this might be a bit forward.  You called it fourth date material if I remember correctly.”

“Oh, my God.  Oh, my God.”  Alex leaned from side to side, trying to get a better look at the school, finally struggling with the controls for her window, moving her seat around and turning on the heat and air jets, until she got the window open and stuck her head out.  “Oh, my God.”

“Well, perhaps you weren’t kidding when you said you might need to be alone.”

“Oh, my God, are you kidding me?” she said as she pulled her head back into the car, staring wide-eyed at Lena.

“This is not a drill.”  Lena smirked.  “If you didn’t bring a microscope, one will be supplied for you.”

“Oh, my God.”

“I believe you said that already.”

“I could kiss you!”  As Lena’s brows raised in obvious surprise, Alex shook her head.  “No, I—”

“Let’s just see how this date goes, shall we?”

Blushing, Alex nodded and broke eye contact.

They were dropped off as near to the Laboratory for Nanobioelectronics as a car could reach.  Daniel, Lena’s driver, initially protested not accompanying them.  However, Lena reminded him that she was being accompanied by an FBI agent, and he rather unwillingly acquiesced to stay with the vehicle.  Alex assured him Lena would be safe with her, though he only seemed slightly comforted by that.

“He’s protective,” Alex noted as they walked together toward the building with the orange tile roof and the blue dome.

“I wish I could say it’s without cause, but lately …” Lena trailed off, her gaze on the horizon.

“Lately what?”

She shook her head.  “You’re going to think I’m a crazy woman.”

“Hey, I’m an FBI agent in National City.  I’ve seen crazy, and it’s very real.”  She nudged Lena with her shoulder, smiling.  “Let me be the judge of that.”

Lena kept her vision cast away, but eventually said, “Someone’s trying to steal my DNA.”

“Excuse me?”

Finally turning to meet Alex’s gaze, she said, “I told you, crazy.”

“No, no.  Just explain it to me.  Why do you think someone’s trying to steal your DNA?”

“Because there have been incidents.”

Fingers wrapping around Lena’s wrist, Alex said, “Incidents?” and stopped in her tracks.

Lena looked down at her arm where Alex held her in place.  She raised an eyebrow and met Alex’s gaze again.

“Sorry,” Alex said pulling her hand away and curling her fingers into a loose fist before rubbing her fingers with her thumb.  “What kind of incidents?”

Walking again, Lena said, “The first was a break-in at my apartment.  That’s concerning enough as my security is excellent, but the thief only took one thing: my hairbrush.  They caught him on the roof.  There were signs of accomplices who had already escaped.  Under questioning, he claimed he was going to sell the article on E-bay, that it would fetch thousands of dollars to the right bidder.”

“Really?”

Lena shook her head.  “Ridiculous.  Maybe my lingerie but not my hairbrush.  We turned him and the whole investigation over to the police.  However, the entire thing, the amount of money that had been spent on their little break-in versus what they’d hoped to gain, made no sense, so I turned in a new hairbrush and not my actual one.”

“You tampered with the evidence.”

“Yes, slap the cuffs on me, Agent.”  Lena held out her hands, smirking.  When Alex just frowned, Lena folded her hands across her waist and shrugged.  “Maybe later then.  At any rate, it’s a good thing that I did.  The man bargained down to a fine and some community service, and the hairbrush in question disappeared from police evidence.”

“Weird.”

“Alex, you’re a scientist.  We don’t do weird.  We do statistical probability.  What does that tell you?”

“It tells me someone wanted your hairbrush which is weird.  I mean, you have great hair but still ... weird.  To draw the conclusion that someone was after your DNA, I’d need more data.”

“Like someone attacking me with a needle?”

Alex grabbed Lena’s wrist again but released it and drew her arm back immediately.  “Sorry.  That was just … What did they inject you with?”

“Nothing.  The needle was empty, and they didn’t actually stab me though they tried.  Daniel interceded.  He was a Navy Seal.”

“Oh, damn.”  Alex rubbed her chin.  “You told the police about this?”

“Daniel apprehended them both, and the police were called.  They’re both still in jail unless they somehow slipped out of their cells, and nobody’s told me.  At any rate, the only reason I can see to attack someone with an empty needle is to take fluid from their body, blood-based on the needle in question.”

“Your DNA.  But why?”

“The only thing I can imagine is my DNA encrypted vault at my company.  If someone wanted to get in there, I’m literally the key.”

Nodding slowly, Alex asked, “You have something of value in there?”

“You don’t lock away something that isn’t valuable, Alex.” 

As they walked up the steps of the building, Alex pulled open the door for Lena who smiled and gave her thanks.  The atrium was wide and tall, the last light of the day streaming in.  Pillars lined the way leading to the second story with metal railings.  Above them was a glass-topped smaller dome, and hanging from it a crystal chandelier.  The floor was a crème color with blue and orange inlays, all shined to a high-gloss.

Alex let out a long, high whistle.  “Not too shabby.”

“Nicer than your office in the FBI?”

“I literally work underground.”  Alex smiled.  “Think of all the tax dollars I’m saving you.”

Looping her arm through Alex’s, Lena squeezed it and laughed.  “My hero.”

They walked in silence to room 240G.  The name outside the door said, ‘Dr. Joseph Wang’.  Lena knocked and at an answering, ‘Come in!’ opened the door, and she and Alex entered.  The man inside was perhaps in his early fifties with graying hair and beard.  He wore black slacks, a rumpled blue dress shirt that looked like he’d been in it all day, a gray jacket that was probably a half-size too big, glasses with thin, silver frames, and a kind smile.  He had the look of a professor too into his books, but he wore it well.

“Dr. Wang,” Lena said stepping forward as she clasped her hands together, ducking her head slightly.  “It’s so good to see you again.  Thank you for agreeing to see us.”

His brow creased, and he stood slowly, his weight shifting onto his hands which were pressed onto his desktop.  “No.”  He blinked several times, pulling off his glasses and wiping each lens with the interior of his blazer before replacing them.  “Lena?”

“Um … Yes, sir?”

“Ha!”  His smile grew, wide and infectious as he stepped out from behind his desk, grasping her shoulders.  “You grew up.”

“Well, yes sir.”

“Yes, but …”  He stepped back, waving a hand up and down in front of her before practically collapsing to a seat on his desktop, a pile of folders leaning dangerously and threatening to topple when he pushed against them.  “I just got old.”

“No.”  She laughed.  “You became more distinguished.”

He waggled a finger at her.  “Ah, the family charm.  That’s dangerous.  Still, I can’t believe how much you’ve changed.  You were this tall.”  He stood, holding his hand at chest height.  “How old were you then?”

“Thirteen.”  Lena’s smile didn’t go beyond her mouth.  “It was my father’s funeral.”

“Lionel.”  He nodded, looking toward Alex for the first time since the ladies had entered.  “He was a great man, that father of hers.  Her father used to try and recruit me to work for him all the time.”

“Well, in keeping with family tradition, I have an office with your name on it.”

He laughed, his arms spreading widely as he gestured at the clutter of books and papers around him.  “And give up all of this?”

“By all means, take it with you.  I’ll send over a U-Haul.  When can you start?”

He shook a finger at her, grinning.  “Lena, you were such a sweet girl, but I can see Lionel in you now.  I like it.” 

He looked toward Alex again, and Lena’s eyebrows rose as she said, “Oh, good lord, how rude of me.  My apologies.  Alex, this is Dr. Joseph Wang, the Chair of Nanoengineering at the University of San Diego.”

“I’ve read so much of your work, Sir,” Alex said smiling and shaking his hand eagerly.  “It’s an honor to meet you.”

“Dr. Wang, this is Dr. …” Lena turned back to Alex, brows furrowed.

“Please, just call me Alex.  I told you, no one calls me doctor anything.”

“And I told you, I think that’s a pity.”  Lena grinned with a bit of heat, laying a hand on Alex’s arm.  “Alex has an MD in bioengineering from the University of Southern California and works as a field agent for the FBI.”

“I’m only technically a field agent.  I’m more of a lab monkey.  They give me a firearm, but I prefer my microscope.”

“Speaking of microscopes,” he looked at his watch, a deep line forming between his brows, “sorry to rush this, but I have class in the morning.  Let’s get to the lab and look at some nanoparticles.”

Leaning into Lena, Alex whispered, “Oh.  My.  God.”

The lab itself was a series of desks and workstations located throughout a spacious area.  Here and there, a graduate student was found working on a project.  There were various machines, computers, and chemistry setups all denoting different areas of study and research.  Lena and Alex wore matching smiles as their gazes danced around the room, never stopping for more than a second or two on any one thing.

“Do you smell that?” Lena asked.

Alex sniffed the recycled air, a few chemicals and cleaning products hinted at but nothing overwhelming.  “Smell what?”

“Science,” Lena said with reverence.

Alex chuckled, sliding her arm over Lena’s shoulder and pulling the other woman closer.  “You are such a nerd.”

“And is that a bad thing?”

“Nah.  I think it’s pretty much,” she held Lena’s gaze for several seconds, both their eyes softened but with an underlying heat to the gaze, “perfect.”

Her arm wrapping around Alex’s waist, Lena said, “Thank you.”

“For?”

“For getting me.  For not making me feel guilty about being me.  For seeing me as normal, this as normal.”

“Well, you are normal but like a really cool normal,” Alex said grinning broadly.  “Can I be you when I grow up?”

“Please don’t.”  Lena let her head fall onto Alex’s shoulder.  “Growing up is definitely overrated.  I wish I had my childhood back.”

Before Alex could respond, they stopped at a table against the back wall.  Dr. Wang flicked a few switches, powering things on.

“Our department has had a recent emphasis on the development of nanotechnology for cancer detection, monitoring, imaging and guided therapies,” he said as he pulled things out.  “When I got your email, Lena, given your background, I was very excited.  I’d heard you were moving your headquarters here, but I’m embarrassed to say, I didn’t realize it had already happened.”

“Several months ago.”

“Well, I suppose that’s why they call us professors absent-minded.  Some stereotypes exist for a reason.”  He prepared a slide as he spoke, checking under the powerful microscope before stepping away.  “There you go.  Who’d like to take the first look at our little friends?”

Alex stepped back, holding her hand out to Lena.  “Oh, you go ahead.”

“Alex,” Lena shook her head, “I’ll have more opportunities.  This is really for you.”

“For real?”  Grinning broadly at Lena’s nod, Alex hurried toward the microscope.  “Thank you.”

After a few moments of silence, Alex said, “These are the nanobullets?”

“Indeed,” he replied.  “The canon uses silica particles—”

“Silicon dioxide nanoparticles?” Alex said without raising her head from the microscope.

Lena smiled as Dr. Wang looked over at her.

“Correct,” he said.  “We use 1-micrometer silica particles which we encase in a liquid gel containing perfluorocarbon for a propellant.  When exposed to ultrasonic waves, the PFC—”

“Vaporizes and expands, propelling the nanoparticle toward the target,” she finished, finally lifting her head.

He smiled at her.  “Would you like to see the microcannon?”

“Is it Christmas?” she replied all too eagerly.

“Let’s see what I have in my bag for you.”  He gestured for Alex to follow as he headed to their next stop.  “It’s this way.”

Alex turned toward Lena.

“Go ahead.  I’ll catch up.  I want a peek at the nanoparticles.”

Alex nodded, placing a hand on Lena’s shoulder.  “Thank you for this.  I may never stop smiling.”  She brushed a kiss over Lena’s cheek before disappearing to the other end of the table about fifteen feet away.

A hand on her cheek, Lena smiled as she watched Alex walk away.  Shaking her head at herself, she examined the nanoparticles on the slide, her own smile spreading as she did so.  When she lifted her head, she startled to find someone standing there.  It was a young woman of about her age, blonde with brown eyes and wearing a white lab coat.

“Miss Luthor.  Um, Dr. Luthor, I ... um …”

Calming after her initial shock, Lena held out a hand.  “It’s Lena.”

“Lena.”  The young woman grasped Lena’s hand, smiling down at it before meeting her gaze again.  “Jessica Miller.  I’m a graduate student here.  I’ve read everything you’ve ever written on cancer cell research and nanotechnology.  You’re brilliant.”

“You’re too kind.”

“Not at all.  It’s true.  I’m sorry to ambush you like this, but I saw you in here, and I couldn’t pass up this opportunity.  I’m specializing in breast cancer research.  You’re familiar with glucocorticoids?”

“Of course, we know they have a strong effect on the progression of later stage breast cancer.”

“Later stage, yes,” Jessica said, “but my work focuses on stage one and the effects of glucocorticoids there on invasive ductal carcinoma via myoepithelial cell apoptosis.”

“Huh.”  Arms crossed, Lena asked, “What have you found?”

“Do you want to see?  My research is right here.  Do you want to read my findings?”  She smiled up at Lena with hope.

“Well, I …” Lena’s gaze slid over to where Alex and Dr. Wang excitedly discussed his team’s project.

When Lena looked at her again, Jessica said, “Please?  It will only take five minutes, ten tops.  My table is right there.  You can see it from here.”  She bit her lower lip and bounced up and down on her toes a bit.

“How many cups of coffee have you had to drink today?”

“We don’t drug test for caffeine.”

Lena laughed, patting Jessica on the arm.  “Oh, I remember those days.  You do know how to tempt a lady with science.”

“That’s a yes?” she asked wide-eyed.

“That’s a yes,” Lena agreed.  “Just let me tell my—”

“Yes.  Thank you.”  She grabbed Lena’s hand, shaking it furiously.  “You won’t be sorry.  This is awesome.  This is amazing.  You’re awesome and amazing.  I’m just going to …” she backed away, stumbling over her own feet but remaining upright.  “My notes.”

“Your notes,” Lena agreed, watching the girl hurrying back to her table and beginning to order things for Lena’s examination.  Walking by Alex, Lena paused as she passed.  “I’ll be right back.  I’m going to look at someone’s research.”

“Something good?”

Lena shrugged.  “Graduate student.  We’ve both been there.”

“You are on a date, you know,” Alex said with a grin.

Smiling back, Lena said, “I won’t be long.  Anyway, we’ve both been in her shoes and know what it means to have someone give you a few minutes of their time to tell you that you’re on the right path.  It’s the least I can do.  Have fun with your microcannon.”

“I am.”  Alex smiled as Lena walked away toward the other table.  “Hurry back!”

Turning, Lena smiled and waved.

For several moments, Alex smiled over at Lena who was standing next to the student before pulling out her phone.

Alex: “Okay, things r going really well here. Can I get a +1 for ur wedding next week?”

As her phone buzzed on the blanket, Kara saw the text and flipped it over quickly.

“Everything all right?” Sam asked.

Kara nodded quickly.  “Oh, sure.  It’s just my sister.  It’s not important.  She’s just, you know, being a sister.”

“Not really.”  Sam shrugged.  “Only child, remember?  Hey, tell me something.  You went from being an only child to having a sister.  What do you think about that?”

“What do I think about that?”

Nodding, Sam said, “I’m thinking about Ruby.  I was a young mom, and I wasn’t exactly trying to start a family.  Suddenly, there she was.  Now I’m older, in a better financial position, in a better emotional position too.  I can’t help but wonder if Ruby is missing out on anything by not having a sibling, or if her life is just as full without one.  That’s kind of a hard question for people to answer because they either have one or they don’t.  You though, you’ve been through both situations really quickly when you were old enough to understand the impact.  What do you think?”

“Oh, wow.”  Kara adjusted her glasses.  “No one’s ever asked me that before.”

“You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to.  That could make you uncomfortable, bring back bad memories.  I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine.”  Kara smiled and pushed herself up to sitting from her lounging position on the blanket.  “It actually brings up good memories.  So, I guess both are really good.  I mean being an only child and not are good.  When I was an only child, I got a lot of attention from my parents when they weren’t at work.  They both had really important jobs and worked a lot of hours, but when they weren’t working, they treated me like I was their world.  That was a great feeling.  I bet Ruby gets that feeling with you.”

“God, I hope so.”  Sam sat upright also, taking a deep swallow from her water bottle.  “I work such ridiculous hours some days, but I always try to make time for Rubes.  Even if it’s just us chasing each other around the house with Nerf guns or the two of us going ice skating for a few hours on the weekend, I make time for that.  I want her to know that I do the other stuff so that I can take care of her.  The rest of it’s important, but she’s the center of my universe, and I don’t want her to ever doubt that.”

“You sound like an amazing mom.”

“I’m a mess, but I’m her mess.  She knows she’s loved.  Ruby will never doubt that.  No child should ever doubt that.”

Brows creasing, Kara nodded.  There were a few moments of silence and then she said, “My sister and I didn’t get along when I first got placed with my foster family.  I was sad, angry, a know-it-all.  You name it.  She resented me for taking attention away from her, for needing so much from her, for existing.  That first year was the worst of my life.  Now, though, I couldn’t imagine life without her.  I’ve lost a lot, but I’ve gained so much.”  When Sam’s hand slid over hers, Kara looked over and smiled.  “I know she loved being an only child and hated having me show up, but I also know she wouldn’t give up having me in her life.  She’s the best big sister I could imagine anyone ever being.  She protects me even though I totally don’t need it.”

“Oh, I’m sure.”

“Hey!”  Kara laughed.  “I’m tougher than I look.”

“You must be,” Sam laughed back, “since you look like a cinnamon roll.”

“Why I ... “ Mouth open, Kara smiled.  “Want some dessert?”

“You’re still hungry?”

“Not really hungry, but dessert is different, right?”

Biting her lower lip, Sam nodded.  “Dessert is different but don’t tell Ruby.”

“Okay … Mom.”

Rising from the ground, Sam winced.  “You don’t get to call me that.  It’s totally ruining the vibe I’m going for here.”

“Which is?”

With a little smile, Sam shook her head and walked away, whispering to herself, “Maybe your daddy but not your mommy.”

Left behind to sit on the blanket, a curious expression formed on Kara’s face.

A few minutes later, Sam returned with two waffle cones with double scoops of ice cream.

“Yes!”  Kara leaped to her feet.  “I love ice cream, and I love those flavors, um, whatever they are.”

Sam laughed holding both cones out in front of her.  “I thought ice cream would be a good choice and ‘whatever’ would be your flavor of choice.  You’re so not picky.  You make this easy.”

“Well, it’s ice cream.  Do they make a bad flavor?”

Sam shrugged.  “Once I’ve tried them all, I’ll let you know.  So, pick a cone.  Like you, my favorite flavor is whatever is available, so I literally don’t care.”

Gaze darting back and forth between the cones, Kara frowned.

“Kara, the ice cream is going to melt.  What’s wrong?”

“You’re making me choose between ice cream flavors?  That’s like picking a favorite child.  I’m not sure how to do that.”

“Here.”  Sam thrust one of the cones toward Kara.  “It has chocolate fudge brownie and cotton candy ice cream.  You’re getting it because like the cotton candy, you’re so sweet.”

“Awwww and yummy,” Kara said taking the cone without hesitation and digging in.  “Mmmmm, so good.”

“Napkins.”  Sam held some out to Kara as they both sat.

“Thanks, someone else’s mom.”

“Better.  So, your sister is on a date tonight?”

“A first date.  It seems to be going well which is awesome.  She had a not so great breakup a while back, not that I know what a great breakup would look like.  After that, her moping to dating ratio was way off.  I tried to tell her that drinking alone in her third favorite bar because she and her ex never went there or having our friends all show up unannounced to crash her place for a game night did not count as a social life.  A good date is what she really needed.”

Nodding, Sam traced the exterior of her ice cream with her tongue, removing the quickly melting layer.  “What about you?  How is your first date going?”

“Hmmm.”  Taking a lick of the ice cream, Kara smiled.  “Well, the food is awesome.”

“Oh, and that’s what counts?” Sam asked wiping her lips and smiling in return.

Kara nodded, her smile growing.  “Yup, it’s almost as good as the company.”

Sam’s eyebrows rose sharply.  “Wow, that must be some impressive company on your date.  I have it on good authority that food is pretty important to you.”

“Yeah,”  Kara ducked her head, pushing her glasses up before meeting Sam’s gaze again, “but not as important as people.  You can get good food in any galaxy, but you’ll find the best people right here.”

“Right here.”  Sam furrowed her brows.  “Right here in this galaxy or …?”

Kara laughed.  “I meant National City, but right here sitting on this blanket tonight is pretty amazing.”

“Hey,” Sam reached out with her foot, pushing Kara’s with it, “someone’s a bit of a smooth talker.”

Kara snorted, immediately proving Sam wrong and shaking her head to drive the point home.  “No, not really.  I usually say the wrong thing or say too much, you know, babble.  I trip over my own words.  I’m fine when I have to write things out, revise and edit them, but just me and my tongue with no editor, pffft.  I’m a mess.”

“Well, I’ll have to disagree because I think you’re,” Sam reached out, running her thumb along the corner of and under Kara’s lower lip, pulling back the digit with a pink smear of ice cream in place which she licked off with a flash of her tongue and a quick up and down motion of her brows, “as sweet as cotton candy.”

Kara swallowed hard.  “Gosh.”

“Adorable.”  Laughter bubbled up out of Sam.

“Yeah, adorable,” Kara breathed out a bit as she said the words, part laugh and a touch of sigh mixed in.  “Adorable is about as close to sexy as I can manage.  It’s my lot in life.  It’s not a lot, but it’s my life.”

“Hey.”  Griping Kara’s forearm, Sam squeezed and leaned down until her gaze met Kara’s, the blonde’s face tipped forward again.  Her voice very serious, Sam said, “I don’t believe that for a second.”

Kara licked her lips, her mouth opening, and closing before she smiled and chuckled.  “You know, we should hurry up and finish this ice cream before it melts.”

Sam smirked.  “You mean because of the way that I’m looking at you?”

“Uh … uh …”  For several moments, Kara blinked before shaking her head and blushing.  When she spoke, it was with wide eyes and a touch of shock to her voice.  “Sam.”

“Hey, I’m too old to play games.”  Sam’s tone was unapologetic as she shrugged.  “I’m not saying there could be laser coming out of these eyes, but you should be glad I’m not a blue-eyed blonde … super glad.”

Kara rolled her eyes.  “Oh, I think I’m safe on that front.”

“Hey, this could be a wig and contacts.  You never know.”

“Are you saying I could be on a date with Supergirl?”

Licking her cone again, Sam nodded as she tried and failed to keep all indication of a smile off of her face.  “Stranger things have happened.”

“Not to me.”  Kara turned to face the musicians again, mumbling into her cone, “And that’s saying something.”

Chuckling as she laid down on the blanket and used her discarded blazer as a pillow, Sam said, “Fine you got me.  I’m not Supergirl.”

“Well, now I’m heartbroken,” Kara said with an overly dramatic sigh.  “That was totally going on Insta.”

Sam tugged gently on Kara’s arm before patting her own stomach.  “Here, lie back.”

“On you?”

Sam smiled.  “I have the word of one wise twelve-year-old that I make a very comfortable pillow.  Apparently, I’m quite plush.”

Kara laid down, her head and the back of her neck resting on Sam’s stomach.  She laid still for only a few seconds before shifting once then again.  Finally, she turned and poked Sam lightly in the abdomen.

“Hey, what was that about?”

“Ruby’s wrong.  You’re all muscle.”

“Thank you?  Was that supposed to be a criticism?”

“No.  It was just … unexpected.”

“Well, I don’t earn it.  It’s certainly not because I work out unless running after my kid counts.  I guess I just get to be a junk food addict and have abs.  Jealous?”  Reaching down, Sam poked Kara in the side.  “Hey, you have muscles!”

However, Kara was already mostly upright, one hand between her and Sam and a horrified expression on her face.  “No, no, Sam, no!”

Curious, Sam pushed herself upright as she reached out.  “What’s wrong?”

Kara kept her hand between her body and Sam’s.  “I’m ticklish, like really ticklish.  It’s not funny.”

Slowly, a smile curled Sam’s lips.  “It’s at least a little bit funny.”

“No, it’s not.”  Kara shimmied slightly away.

Sam scooted closer.  “I think it is.”

“Sam, let’s keep our priorities straight here.”

“We’re going to keep something straight?”

Kara rolled her eyes.  “Just work with me.  It’s a warm night in California, and we have two rapidly melting ice cream cones.  Now, is it really worth losing ice cream to tickle me?”

Sam’s gaze darted back and forth between Kara and the ice cream several times before she hurriedly licked her cone.  “Damn it, you’re right.  Death before dishonor but neither before ice cream.”

“Yes!”  Kara licked her own cone and the trail of ice cream that had made its way onto her hand.  “Truce?”

“Truce but only because there’s ice cream, and you ate so much I’m kind of worried you might puke.”

As Sam laid down and patted her stomach again, Kara frowned but took the invitation saying, “I would never puke.  There’s only one way to eat food, and that’s the right way.  Puking is for quitters.”

“You’re adorable.”

“Too adorable to tickle?” Kara asked as she rolled onto her side, looking eagerly up at Sam.

With an eye roll, Sam sighed.  “Probably.”

With a satisfied smirk, Kara rolled onto her back again and licked her cone, settling in.  “Ha.  No one’s ever too sexy to tickle.  Adorable wins.”

The two women sat around for about another half hour listening to music, the ice cream long gone, before they packed up, and Sam drove Kara home.  Although it was Friday night, they both had morning work plans, and Sam had to get home to relieve her nanny.  Sam parked about a half block from Kara’s but insisted on walking Kara home.  They walked close, their shoulders bumping and hands brushing as they did so.  When they stopped in front of Kara’s apartment, they kept talking, neither seeming eager to end the evening.

“So, this is me.”  Kara smiled as she glanced up at her apartment.

“Yeah, I remember.”

“Right.”  Kara pushed her glasses up.  “I’d invite you in but, um …”

“I have to get going anyway.”

“Ruby.”

“Ruby.”  Sam nodded.  “I’d love to see your place some other time, though.  I bet it’s adorable.”

With an eye roll and a sigh, Kara’s smile grew.  “Adorable, huh?  You’re not going to let that go, are you?”

Reaching out and running her fingers along the back of one of Kara’s hands, Sam asked, “Any reason why I should?”

Her back against the brick building, Kara wound a lock of hair around her fingers.  Nervous laughter bubbled up out of her throat.  “I guess not.”

Sam’s appraising gaze ran along Kara’s face taking in blue eyes under well-formed brows, a strong and straight nose, the slightly blush cheeks, and then resting on full lips for a moment before meeting Kara’s gaze again.  Tipping her head a little bit forward, Sam pursed her lips.  “Hey, I think you have a little bit of ice cream left on your lip.”

“What?  Where?”  Kara reached up to her face, but Sam took her hand.

“Let me get it.”  Stepping in closer, Sam ran her thumb along Kara’s lower lip, her gaze locked on Kara’s.

When Sam pulled away her thumb, Kara swallowed hard.  “Did you, um, did you get it?”

“Nope.”

“Oh, um, well, maybe you should uh …”

“Try something else?” Sam suggested with a lift to her eyebrow.

“Yeah, that.”

There was little space between their bodies, but as Sam stepped even closer, their forms pressed together.  Sam’s mouth hovered so close to Kara’s that they shared breath, and she ran her tongue the length of Kara’s lower lip.  Sam pulled her mouth back, lipping her own lips.  “I think I got something that time.”

One hand on Sam’s hip, Kara ran the other through Sam’s hair and along the back of the brunette’s neck.  Her voice low and a bit husky, Kara said, “Yeah, you did.”  She placed just the tiniest bit of pressure on the back of Sam’s head, urging the other woman to close the distance again.

This time their mouths slotted together perfectly.  They kissed, slow and gentle.  It was just lips at first.  One kiss, then another kiss, full lips to full lips.  Then when Sam’s tongue snaked along Kara’s lower lip again, Kara opened her mouth and gently flicked Sam’s upper lip with her own in turn.  They deepened the kiss, their mouths and bodies merged nearly as close as they could manage fully clothed in a public place.

Finally, both breathless, they slumped slightly with their foreheads pressed together for several moments before Sam pressed her kiss into Kara’s.

“Okay, that was better than the food.”

“Even the ice cream and the potstickers,” Kara agreed still smiling.  “You need to get home to Ruby, right?”

“Ruby, right.  I’m a mom.  I have a daughter who is most definitely not upstairs in your apartment.”

“Are you sure?”  Kara smirked as Sam pulled just her face back.  “Maybe you should go check.”

“Argh.”  Sam pressed another kiss into Kara’s lips.  “Can I take a raincheck on that?”

“Please do.  Call me?  I’ll call you.”

“Yes to both of those.”  Leaning in, Sam kissed Kara one more time.  “Okay, if I don’t get going, the cops are going to show either because my kid calls them because I’m an absentee mom or your neighbors call them because of the show we put on.”

Holding Sam’s hand while the brunette stepped away, Kara said, “My neighbors might not mind.”

“Really?”  Sam grinned.  “I’ll keep that in mind for our next date.”  She dashed forward, kissing Kara quickly once more.

Kara cleared her throat.  “Ruby.”

“Going.  I’m really going!”  Sam held her hands at shoulder height and backed away.  “I’ll call you maybe tonight.  Would tonight be too soon?”

“Well,” Kara shrugged, “it would be nice to know you got home safely.”

“Exactly, it’s courtesy.  I’m being courteous.”

“Courteous,” Kara agreed as Sam turned and walked away.

Sam made it a few feet before she looked over her shoulder, waving to Kara who waved back.  Kara watched until Sam made it safely to her car and pulled away, then dashed to her apartment and pulled out her cellphone.

Kara: “Ahhhhhh!!!!”

Kara: “We kissed!!!!”

Kara: “Ahhhhhh!!!!”

Kara: “Alex, we kissed!!!!”

Kara: “Alex!!!!”

Forgotten in her pocket, Alex’s cellphone repeatedly buzzed as each text came through.  She didn’t notice as she gestured excitedly while sitting next to Lena in the car.  “The ultrasonic waves guide the nanoparticles to the tumor where the therapeutic payload is released.  It makes the selected tissue more permeable to the drug. Oh!  Oh!  The microcannon, it’s fashioned from a porous membrane coated with graphene oxide and gold.  They use perfluorocarbon as their propellant for the silica particles suspended in a liquid gel.  Then, when the PFC vaporizes from pulsed ultrasonic waves, the gaseous microbubbles expand rapidly to propel the nanobullets toward their target.  Oh, and did you see—”

“Alex,” gently squeezing Alex’s arm, Lena said, “I was standing right next to you.”

“Oh, right.”  Closing her eyes for a moment, Alex smiled at Lena.  “Sorry.  I guess I got excited there.”

“Darling, don’t apologize.  I love having someone who shares my joy in scientific discovery.  If nothing else comes of this, I hope we can do this sort of thing again.”

“I’d really love that.”  Alex tried to move closer, straining against the seatbelt.  “Maybe next time it can be my lab instead of yours.”

Lena chuckled.  “My my, we’re having the ‘your place or mine’ discussion, are we?  Things are advancing quickly.”

Alex opened her mouth, her head shaking slightly, but then she shrugged.  “Maybe.  This is kind of date four by my math.”  When Lena just lifted an eyebrow and smiled, Alex looked out the window, watching as they drove south down the San Diego Freeway.  “So, we’re heading back to National City?”

“If you want.”  Lena slid back in her seat, glancing out the window.  “I had an idea for another stop along the way if you’re game.”

“Another stop?  More science?”

“Yes,” Lena said slowly.  “It’s chemistry.”

“Chemistry?”  Alex met Lena’s gaze again.  “Well, you haven’t steered me wrong so far.  I’m game.”

Hand on the back of the seat ahead of her, Lena said, “Daniel, take us to our next destination.”

“Yes, ma’am,” he replied.

They were only on the freeway for a few minutes before they got off the major road while still in San Diego.  They were briefly on city streets before the car stopped in front of a building with a red front and a tan awning.  It had a black airplane-shaped sign that stuck out from it at a ninety-degree angle, and both the sign and the front of the place were lit up with the words ‘Aero Club’.  Daniel stopped the car out front so Lena and Alex could depart.  Then he drove around back toward the parking area.

“I’m surprised your bodyguard is letting you out of his sight.”

“He’s not my bodyguard,” Lena replied dryly as she headed toward the entrance.

“Oh, hey,” Alex hurried after Lena and pulled the door open, “that was supposed to be a joke.  Sorry.”

Lena nodded.  “Sore spot.  I’m sorry.  I rather abhor the concept of bodyguards.  Once you go that route, once you start living in fear, you can’t go back.  I have a good security team and surround myself with experienced people who excel in their field.  Daniel has no interest in working security, but he’s happy to drive me around and use what he’s learned toward my safety.”  Gesturing with her head, Lena said, “Come on.  Let’s sit inside and talk.  Have you ever been here?”

“No, but I’ve heard of it,” Alex said as she followed Lena into the bar.  “This place is supposed to be great.  I hear they have a lot of different whiskeys.”

“Over 1,200,” Lena said, projecting her voice over the din of the Friday night crowd.  “You said you were a whiskey woman.”

“Yeah, but I can’t drink that many.”

Lena grinned at her.  “Well, you have to start somewhere.  Let’s see how many we can get through tonight.  If we still have livers in the morning, maybe we’ll try our luck on some more another day.”

The place was a row of stools set against the bar on the left and booths on the right with no dartboard or pool table to be seen anywhere.  It was just long and narrow, seating on each side with a walkway in the middle.  It looked like a dark, unpretentious dive bar from the ‘60s.

This was the kind of place where you came to drink. 

Alex looked left and right, through the din of Friday night patrons.  “Seating may be a problem.  Maybe I should start running people’s pictures and see if anyone has any active warrants.  That should clear up a seat or two.”

“Creative,” Lena said with a raised eyebrow, “but let’s try something else first.”  She stepped over to the bar, signaling to the bartender who came at the summons.  She spoke to him briefly in hushed tones before he nodded and walked away.  Returning to Alex, she said, “Chad is getting the owner.”

“Chad?”

“Chad the bartender.  He came with the name.”  Lena shrugged.  “I didn’t name him.”

About three minutes later, an older man, maybe in his sixties, wearing a tan button-down short-sleeved shirt with white stripes on the front — kind of like a bowling shirt — slid through the crowd to them.  “Hey, I’m Bill.  One of you two must be Lena.”

“Me, unfortunately,” Lena said with a grin.  “I assume everything is well in hand?”

“Yeah, we’re all set.  Follow me.”

As they trailed after Bill, Alex asked, “We’re all set?”

Lena smirked.  “And no one had to be arrested.  I don’t know if you’re happy or disappointed about that, Agent.”

They were led to the last booth in the bar.  It had a sign on it that said, ‘reserved’ and was empty.  There was a similar sign on the stool across from the booth.  On the table was a spiralbound book called ‘The Aero Club Bar Whiskey List’ which was several pages thick.

“Here you go, ladies.”  Bill gestured to the booth.  “You’re all set for the night.  Barbara will bring over your first tray of whiskeys.  She’ll be tending the bar but right across from you, so if you need anything just let her know and she’ll come to you.  If you need me, she’ll get me.”

“Thank you, Bill.”  Lena grasped his hand solidly.  “We’re looking forward to the experience.”

“Glad to have your patronage,” he said and turned heading back out of the main bar.

As Lena sat, Alex took the seat across from Lena, keeping her eye on the bar.  “Why do I feel like this isn’t normal treatment?  Is this someone else who knew your father?”

“No, a friend of Benjamin.”  As Daniel entered the bar and took the reserved stool, Lena smiled at him.

“Benjamin who?”

“Benjamin Franklin.”  When Alex just continued to stare, Lena said, “He’s on the hundred dollar bill, Alex.  I paid the man.”

“Oh.”  Blinking rapidly, Alex nodded.  “Gotcha.  You didn’t have to do that.  We could have gone anywhere.”

“You were willing to arrest people to get us a table.”

“Yeah, but …”  Alex nodded.  “Yeah, I guess you’re right.  I just feel bad thinking about how much money you could have spent on a first date.”

“Alex, trust me.  It’s not a problem.”

“But—”

“Alex, it’s better to spend money like there’s no tomorrow than to spend tonight like there’s no money.”

Alex studied Lena for several moments.  “You’ve lost a lot of people, haven’t you?”  When Lena inhaled sharply, Alex said, “I’m sorry.  It’s just, in some ways, you remind me of someone.  She’s lost a lot of people too.  Sometimes she needs to talk about it, but most of the time she just needs me to be there, to be present.  I get that.  You’ve got my number, you know, for whatever.”

It got quiet then, and Alex flipped through the whiskey menu until Barbara brought out a tray of ten whiskeys, five for each of them.  Each was a shot, roughly 1.5 ounces of whiskey.  Each glass had a little sign in front of it marking what type each was.

“Oh, we’re not ordering.”  Alex closed the menu.

“Thank you.”  Lena nodded up at Barbara.  “I hope you don’t mind, but I took the liberty of ordering our initial drinks.  After this, please feel free to make the selections.  Of course, if this isn’t all right with you—”

“No, no.  This is great.  I just wasn’t expecting such a selection.  I thought we’d grab a drink and go from there.”

“Well,” Lena picked up a glass, sniffing the whiskey, “a bird never flew on one wing, Alex.”

“Um, okay.  I guess that’s true.”  She picked up one of her own glasses, inhaling the aroma, which was mostly alcohol at first, so she gave it a second sniff to get the scent of the whiskey.  “Should we toast?  I feel like we should toast.”

“Absolutely.”  Holding out her glass, Lena said, “Beimid ag ól!”

“Whoa!  Where did that come from?  What language was that even?”

“An ancient language of great wisdom.”  Lena grinned.  “That be Gaelic.”

“O-kay.  And what does that great piece of Gaelic wisdom mean?”

Elbow on the table as she held her drink up, Lena quirked an eyebrow.  “Why, it means, ‘Let’s be drinking.’”

Smiling back, Alex tapped her glass against Lena’s.  “Okay, I’ll drink to that.”

They both sipped at their whiskeys, savoring the flavor.

“Well?” Lena asked.

“Damn good.”  Alex took a few minutes to enjoy the drink before putting her glass upside down on the table.   What’s next?”

“A Japanese whiskey,” Lena said looking at the next card.

“I don’t think I’ve ever had Japanese whiskey.”

“Well, that’s a shame.  I won’t say it’s Irish, but the Japanese make a damn fine whiskey.”

“Not that you’re biased toward Irish anything.”

“Alex, the Irish are the world-renowned experts on whiskey.  Did you know the word whiskey comes from the Gaelic word usquabea?  That word comes from the phrase usque beatha which means ‘water of life’.”  Lena ran her hand a few inches above the still full glasses.  “This is life.”

“I did not know that.”

“Well, now you do.”  Grinning again, Lena said, “The Irish, they know how to do a few things right.  Irish tea is the fucking bomb.”

Alex laughed.  “If I’m ever looking for tea, I know who to ask.”

When Alex tried to drink, Lena said, “Wait.  It’s your turn to toast.”

“Oh, we’re still doing that.”

“We’re still drinking, aren’t we?”

“Uh, right.”  Alex nodded, considering then said, “Take everything in moderation — including moderation.”  Then they both drank.  “Yeah, that was good.”

“I told you.” 

“You did,” Alex agreed.  “So, why engineering?  I get that you’re good at it, but you’re brilliant.  I bet you could have done most anything with your life.  Why engineering?”

A little smile on her lips, Lena said, “It was my father.  He was a businessman, but he was an engineer.  He used to let me go to work with him sometimes.  As dry as I found the business end of things, I adored the labs.  Like other parents probably baked a cake or had a catch with their child, I would work on a microprocessor or something like that with my father.  He always used to joke with the R&D folks and say, ‘Watch out, Lena’s gunning for your job, and one day she’ll get it.’  People smiled and laughed at that joke when I was eight or nine.  One day, though, and I couldn’t have been more than nine at the time, someone said to him, ‘I think she’s gunning for yours.’  My father looked down at me, stroked my hair, and smiled.  He said, ‘I think you’re right.  I couldn’t be prouder.  She’ll make a great CEO one day.’  I just smiled even though I didn’t really understand it all.  I just knew I was having a good day with my father, and we were happy.”

“It sounds like he was proud of you.”

“He was.”  Lena lifted her glass, staring at the liquid.  “My father was proud of me, and he loved me.  I always felt the same way.  I miss him.”  She held up her glass to Alex.  “To fathers. They poured for us strong foundations.  It is up to us to build on that the stories strong and tall.” 

Again they took time to sip at the whiskey and enjoy the scent and flavor.  As they finished that, turning their empties over, Alex said, “Okay, coming up with toasts is going to get harder the more that we drink.”

“That’s ridiculous.  The more I drink, the more brilliant I get.  Just ask me.”

“Oh, good point.  Me too.”

“What about you?”  Lena asked.  “Do you get on well with your father?”

“My father.”  Picking up the card for the next whiskey, Alex furrowed her brows and stared at it.

As Alex continued to stare in silence, Lena said, “I’m sorry, Alex.  We can talk about something—”

“It’s fine.”  Alex smiled tensely, finally meeting Lena’s gaze.  “My father and I had the best relationship when I was growing up.  He was a bioengineer and one of the main reasons I wanted to go into medicine.  He was brilliant.”

When Alex quieted, Lena said, “Was.”

“He’s still alive,” Alex hurried to fill in.  “I thought he had died.  He was working for the government, and we were told he was dead, but I found out recently he’s still alive.  He’s working with another organization now.  He did it to protect us, my family, my sister and I, but that only goes so far.  Now I’m not sure whose side he’s on and I …”  Dropping the place card on the table, Alex picked up her whiskey.  “I’m not sure who he is anymore.”

“He’s your father.”  Lena reached across the table, squeezing Alex’s forearm.  “He’s the man who raised you, who inspired you.  Whatever he’s doing, whatever choices he made, he did it because he believes it’s the right choice.  He did it for your family.  We both know the way we saw life as children and as adults is very different.  Give your father the benefit of the doubt.  I don’t know him, but I bet I know enough to know he loves you first and foremost.”

“Thanks.”  Alex nodded and managed a bit of a smile.  “How about a topic change?”  She held out her glass, waiting for Lena to do the same.  “Here’s to the women who have used and abused us.  May they never stop.”

Clanking her glass against Alex’s, Lena said, “Nice,” before tipping her glass back and taking a sip.  “We’re not going to talk about our exes now, are we?”

Glass frozen in front of her face, Alex said, “As in where we went wrong before and how not to repeat it?”

“I’m not sure I have enough experience for that.  I don’t date much.”

“How?”  Alex nodded as she asked.  “I mean, really you’re brilliant, gorgeous, obviously capable of planning a pretty much perfect date.”

Laughter bubbled up out of Lena, her elbow against the table as she leaned her cheek against her palm.  “Pretty much perfect date?”

“Science and whiskey, so yeah.”

“Hmmm.”  Lena took another sip of her drink.  “Maybe I just didn’t have the right woman to share it with before.”

“Well, lucky me then.”  Alex knocked back the rest of her drink as she watched Lena intently, the other woman finishing her own drink.,  “Okay, your turn to toast if you can think of one.”

“Please, they’ll run out of whiskey before I run out of toasts.”

“This place?”

Glancing over at the rising pyramid of liquor, Lena said, “Okay, maybe not this place.  A normal bar would, but not this place.  I’m far too Irish—”

“Can we buy you ladies a drink?” A man asked as he stopped next to Lena’s side of the booth, another man walking past the table to stop by Alex.

Lena held up the drink in her hand.  “No thank you.  We’re all set.  Have a lovely evening.” 

“Hey, it’s Friday night, and we’re all in a great bar.”  The guy gestured around them.  “Be nice to a guy and at least let him buy you one drink.  It’s just a free drink.  What could that hurt?”

“I said no.  Walk away, please.”  She turned back to Alex.  “As I said, far too Irish not to be—”

“Oh, come on, beautiful.”  He slid into the booth next to Lena, the man across from him moving to mirror the motion but Alex was already moving out.  “How about we just—”

“Maybe you couldn’t hear the lady over all the noise in the bar.”  Daniel’s hand was on the man’s shoulder, bunching up the material of the shirt there and pulling the man out of the booth and onto his feet.  “She said no.”

“Hey, back the fuck off!”  The man pushed at Daniel, trying to free himself and having no success.  “This is none of your business!”

As his friend tried to join in the ruckus, Alex thrust her badge in the middle of things.  “Federal agent!  Maybe we could take things down a notch, boys?”  Suddenly fists relaxed, and everyone took several steps back.  “Better much better.”

“FBI?”  The man who’d sat next to Lena looked over at her.  “What the hell is this?”

“A date and you’re interrupting it, asshole.”  Alex jabbed him in the shoulder with a finger.  “Now, are we going to have any more problems from you and your buddy here, or can I get back to my lady friend?”

The man looked from Alex to Daniel, then dropped his face, rubbing at the back of his neck as he muttered something and tried to walk away.

“Hey, hold on.”  Alex grabbed the guy by the shoulder and pulled him back, pushing him up against the divider that separated two booths.  “When a lady says no she means no.  She doesn’t mean maybe.  She doesn’t mean no, but I’ll mean yes after a few drinks.  She doesn’t mean no but talk me into it.  No means no, you hear me?”

Scowling, the guy nodded.

“I didn’t hear you.  What does no mean?”

He muttered something.

“It’s kind of loud in here,” Alex said cupping her hand around her ear.  “What does no mean?”

He screwed up his face, but he said, “No.”

“Say it, say the whole thing, so I know you understood.”

He opened and closed his mouth once then said, “No means no.”

“There you go.”  Alex smiled and clapped the man on the shoulder, pushing him back when he tried to leave and pulling out her phone.  She unlocked it and snapped his photo.

“Hey, you can’t do that.”

“I can’t take a picture in a public place?”  Alex held up her phone and wiggled it around.  “No audio.  I sure as shit can, Sherlock.  I can also run you in the DMV database to get your name and home address, check you for any priors, and if I don’t like what I see, I can show up at your work on Monday.”

“You can’t do that.”

“No?  Well, why don’t you call the police?  Tell them that you busted up the date of a federal officer, and when the lady she was with told you to leave, you ignored her, so that federal officer is running a background check on you and having you flagged in the system.  See if they think I can’t do that.  I dare you.”  When the guy swallowed hard, Alex said, “Now get out of here, and don’t so much as drive one mile over the speed limit.  People will be watching.”

The man and his friend scurried off, and Alex made her way back to her seat, nodding at Daniel when he nodded at her.  Lena was watching her with an unreadable expression.

“Are you upset?”

“Upset by what you did or by some idiot with more alcohol in his system than brain cells in his head?”

Alex shrugged.  “Did you not want me to step in?  It wasn’t that I didn’t think you could handle yourself, but the guy was an asshole.”

“Alex—”

“Don’t give me the abuse of power speech, okay?”  Alex pulled out her phone, unlocking it and doing something with the picture she’d taken.  “I’m just going to send his picture to a friend and make sure the guy isn’t wanted, isn’t on probation, doesn’t have any priors or anything like that.  I’m not actually going to flag him or go by his work.  I’m not a total asshole.  I’m just protective.”  When she looked up from the phone, Lena was smiling at her.  “What?”

“It’s nice to have someone watch out for me and not because they’re on my payroll.  I’m not used to it.  I don’t really have friends just a friend, and technically she is on my payroll so …”  Lena shrugged.  “Anyhow, seeing you go all federal agent on the guy was **hot**.”

“Yeah?”

Nodding slowly, Lena said, “Oh, yeah.  You’re right.  I can take care of myself, but it’s nice knowing I don’t have to when I’m out with someone.”

“You’re safe with me, Lena.”

“I can see that.  It’s a nice feeling.  Thank you.”

They sat in a little bubble in the crowded bar, heat flowing between them with their gazes locked.

Finally, Alex straightened her tie.  “How much did that guy’s friend have to drink?  I’m not exactly going for ‘home for Thanksgiving with the folks and in the closet’ here.  I mean, could I look more gay?”

Lena chuckled.  “I’m sure he noticed.  I’m also sure he thought he could be the one that would change you.”

“Change me?”  Alex blanched.

Smirking as she traced the rim of her glass with her index finger, Lena leaned over the table and said, “You know, with his magic penis.”

“What!?”  Alex looked around as if someone else might have overheard, then grabbed her whiskeys and took a swallow.  “Lady, there is not enough alcohol in this bar for that.  Hell, there’s not enough alcohol on this planet for that.”

“Well, I’ll drink to that.  I believe it’s my turn to toast.”  She raised her final shot.  “Here’s to lobster tail and whiskey.”

With a shrug, Alex knocked her drink back.

“Three of my favorite things.”

Alex choked, struggling to swallow her drink, which she barely managed, before erupting into a fit of coughs she struggled to speak around.

“You ... cough cough ... bitch.  You did ... cough … that on … cough … purpose.”

A hand to her chest, Lena’s face was the image of total innocence.  “Me?  I haven’t the foggiest what you mean, Agent.  What did I say?”

“Do you lie to your Board of Directors like that?”

“Regularly,” Lena replied with a laugh then tapped on the menu.  “It’s your turn to choose the next rounds.”

“First, we drink waters and take a restroom break, so we don’t drink ourselves into a coma.”

Lena looked like she wanted to argue, but she just nodded.

They placed their order for some waters and a little bit of food, both using the bathroom.  They took some time to finish their non-alcoholic drinks, even splitting an appetizer, before deciding to move onto the next round.

Alex flipped open the menu, eyes widening at the selection.  “How many?”

“I can drink whatever you can drink.”

“Oh, I can drink a lot.”

“Not more than me.”

Meeting Lena’s gaze, Alex said, “I guess we’re going to find out.”

It took several minutes for Alex to make their selection, another five whiskeys.  Lena signaled to Barbara the bartender who came over and took the order.  While Lena did so, Alex pulled out her phone, checking her texts.

“Everything all right?”

Looking up, Alex smiled and nodded.  “Just checking to see how things are going with my sister, making sure she’s okay.  You know, big sister stuff.  She had texted me right before you picked me up and …” Alex shook her head, putting her phone into her pocket.  “Sorry, I’m being rude, a little bit drunk and rude.  I’m on a date with a brilliant, engaging, woman, the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen in real life, and I’m thinking about my sister.”

“Actually, I think you’re being a sweet big sister thinking about your little sister.  I wish my older brother were still around to worry about me.  Plus, you just said a lot of nice things about me.”  Lena held out one of her hands, palm up.  “Who am I to disagree with you now?”

Alex chuckled but watched Lena.  “Is your brother … gone?”

“In a sense,” Lena replied.  “He’s still alive if that’s what you’re asking.  He got himself in some legal trouble.  He’s in jail.”

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

“That makes two of us.  It’s probably just the two of us.  Other people are not so sorry.”  Lena sighed, her elbow on the table as she leaned her chin on the palm of her hand.  “I ended up testifying against him.  Apparently, it was the ultimate betrayal, so said Alexander.  My mother agreed, but she would.  It was always those two walking lockstep on everything.  I think dear old Dad did a lousy job cutting the umbilical cord there.”

“Wow, uh …  wow.”

“Sorry.”  Lena shrugged.  “Five whiskeys in and I’m complaining about my family.  Way to ruin the evening, Lena.”

“Hey, it’s fine.”  Alex reached across the table, resting her hand on Lena’s forearm.  “Family is complicated.  I get it.  Mine certainly is.”

“Anyone in jail?”

“Um, no.”

“Do they love you?”

Alex frowned.  “Of course.”

“Sounds pretty cut and dry to me, Agent.”

“My dead father came back to life.  Do I get points for that?”

“Okay, extra points for zombie working for some unnamed organization.”

Alex snorted.  “More like secret, evil organization cyborg.”

“I … Did you say cyborg?”

“Uh …” Alex shook her head.  “Ignore me.  I really exaggerate after a few whiskeys.”

“I can see that.  I can’t wait to hear what you’re spouting off after our next round of drinks.”  Smirking, Lena leaned back in her seat.  “You’ll probably be saying you’re related to aliens.  Oh, what an interesting date that would be.”

Alex opened and closed her mouth several times and then changed it back to an earlier subject.  “Hey, about your family, I’m sure they love you.”  When Lena just raised an eyebrow, Alex said, “Was there a problem when you came out?  I was pretty terrified to tell my mom, but she was actually awesome about it.  Maybe your family just needs time.”

“Oh, God no.  My mother could care less about my personal life so long as it reflects well on the family.  I can screw women, they just need to be the right kind of women.”  Forearms pressed into the table, Lena smiled again.  “You, Agent, are not the right kind of woman.  It’s one of the many things I like about you.”

“Your mom doesn’t believe you should be dating a public servant?”

“My mother doesn’t think I should be dating anyone that doesn’t appear on the Forbes 400 list.”

“Forbes 400 list?”

“She’s a socio-economic snob among other things.”  Lena shrugged.  “She came from the right kind of family.  I’m sure that’s why my father married her.”

Just then the waitress came over with their tray of drinks.

Alex took one of the whiskeys, examining the liquid.  “You know, I always thought my parents had a pretty great marriage, but I’ve had to question that recently.  Like I said before, my dad made some choices I disagree with.  I love him.  I’ll always love him, but I don’t understand what he did.”  When Alex looked up from her glass, Lena was watching her with green eyes that showed no judgment, just perhaps too much wisdom for Lena’s age.  “I used to think I knew who I was, but so much has changed in the past year it proved I was wrong.  Now I’ve discovered a whole new Alex, and that’s helping me to realize some of the things I won’t settle on.  I’d really like to have a partner in all of that.  I’d like a wife but …”

“You don’t know?”

“I do.  I know the kind of relationship I want, commitment I want, but when I think about some of the examples of traditional marriage that I’ve seen …” Alex sighed.

“Alex, your marriage doesn’t have to be anyone else’s, and you can pretty much guarantee that your marriage to a woman won’t look like traditional anything.  People like you and me, we can’t let our parents’ mistakes define our futures.  Anyway, what was it that Ellen said about asking the chopsticks which one of them was the fork?”

Nodding, Alex raised her glass, “Let’s drink a toast to traditional marriage.  To the three rings of marriage: the engagement ring, the wedding ring, and the suffering.”

Picking up her drink, Lena downed it in one shot and picked up another one and saying, “Níl aon leigheas ar an ngrá ach pósadh.”

Alex had finished her first drink, but merely held her next glass of whiskey in her hand.  “What does that mean?”

“There’s no cure for love except to marry.”

Alex nodded and drank.

“Didn’t trust me?”

“Didn’t trust you not to say something to make me snarf my whiskey.”

“Ah, fair enough.”  They both took a few minutes to savor this whiskey.  “You go.”

Alex exhaled heavily, holding her next whiskey.  “Better to be a well-known drunkard than an anonymous alcoholic.”

“Heh.  Everyone hates a quitter,” Lena said as she drank, appreciating the whiskey.  She stared at the glass.  “Alex, hey, Alex.”

“Hmmmm?”

“I think I might be getting a bit,” Lena held her other hand out, wiggling it about, “drunk.”

Alex snorted.  “Ya think?  You’ve had a lot to drink.  How do you feel?”

Smiling at Alex, Lena said, “Warm.”

“That’s the whiskey.”

“Uh-uh.  It’s the company.”  Finishing her drink, Lena picked up her next glass.  “To the kisses we’ve snatched,” she held the glass, staring at Alex with a grin but not drinking yet, “and vice versa.”

“Jesus …” Alex snorted and shook her head, smiling.  She knocked her glass against Lena, drinking when the other woman did.  “Okay, you’re a fucking dirty drunk.”

“Alcohol makes me fucking honest.  Your turn, Agent.”

Alex grinned.  “Say that again.  Call me that again.”

“Agent.”  Lena smiled.  “It’s your turn to give the toast … Agent.”

They sat smiling at each other for maybe a minute, gazes wandering a bit but never leaving the other’s person.

“To hell,” Alex finally said, holding the final shot up.  “May the stay there be as fun as the way there.”

“We’re out again.”  Lena pouted after they’d both finished.  “Crap.  My brain is telling me that I have to get up in the morning, and I’ve already had a lot to drink.  I should probably stop.”

“Do you always listen to your brain?”

Lena tilted a bit in her seat.  “Usually.  It’s very big and loud.  It’s gotten me this far.”

“One more.”  Alex grinned, pushing herself up and leaning over the table at Lena.  “I’ve got an idea.  Just one more shot.”

“You’re really pretty.  Do you know that?”

“I want to put my mouth on your mouth.  I wanted to put my mouth on yours since I first saw you.”

“Well … I wouldn’t stop you.”

Alex sighed heavily, her smile growing.  “Cool.  One more shot first, okay?”

“Okay.  We are in a whiskey bar.”

“Exactly.”  Dropping back into her seat, Alex waved a hand as she looked toward the bar.  “Daniel, Daniel.”

He rose and walked over the stand by their table.

“Come and drink with us,” Alex said.

“I can’t, ma’am, I’m on duty.”

“Oh, come on.  One drink won’t kill you,” Lena said.  “Go grab us all a drink.”  She slid an empty whiskey glass toward him.

He slid it back.  “I’m driving.  I’m driving you.  It might kill all of us.”

“Pffft.  Spoilsport.”

When he tried to leave, Alex grabbed his arm.  “Wait, toast with us!”

“Yes, toast with us!”

“I still can’t drink.”

“Toast with whatever you’re drinking,” Alex said.  “Grab your drink, grab us each another drink, and toast with us.”

“I think maybe you should both stop.  You’ve had enough.”

“We are; we are stopping,” Alex said.  “Right after this drink, we’re done.  Be a pal and get it for us.”

“I don’t think—”

“It’s an order,” Lena said.  “I’m your boss, and I’m being bossy.  Grab us drinks and toast with us.”

“Will you even remember this in the morning?” he asked.

She nodded, smiling.  “I have a huge brain, huge.  Do you want to know to how many places I can calculate pi?  Do you?”

“No, ma’am.  Let me grab your drinks and a ginger ale.”  It was a few moments for Daniel to get a fresh drink for himself and their shots, and then he joined them again.  “Okay, so what are we doing?”

“You are toasting, Daniel,” Alex said.  “You are toasting, and we are drinking because we are not boring driving people.”

“Fine.  What am I toasting?”

Lena and Alex stared at each other in confusion for several moments before Lena said, “Us?”

“Yes!  Yes, us!”  Alex bounced a bit in her seat.  “Daniel, you are toasting us.  Do it.  Do it, Daniel.”

He sighed heavily, holding out his drink while they both leaned on their fists, elbows on the table, and stared at him.  “Here’s to lesbians because they have good taste.”

“Hell yeah!”  Alex knocked her shot back. 

“I will drink to that,” Lena said then lowered her voice to a conspiratorial tone and added, “I’ll do a lot of things to that.”  Then she drank her whiskey.

Daniel piled all of the empties on a tray, ready to be taken away.  “Can I go now?”

“Daniel.  Daniel.”  Alex grabbed the front of his suit jacket, pulling him closer.  “Listen to me.  I need you to listen to me.”

“I can hear you, ma’am.”

Alex patted his cheek.  “Daniel, you’re a good man, and I don’t say that easily.  I like you.  I like Lena.  You take care of her, okay?”

“I promise.”

“You promise?”

“Yes.”  He nodded, prying her fingers off of his lapels.  “I promise.”

As he walked away, the empties in hand, Alex said, “I like Daniel.”

“Me too.  I think I’ll keep him around.  I don’t trust easily, but he’s a keeper.”

Alex nodded until she frowned, a deep look of concentration growing on her face.  “Hey, aren’t you supposed to not leave your DNA anywhere?  What about these glasses?  You left your spit all over them.”

“I do not spit, Agent.  I have much too much class for that.”

Alex waved a hand around.  “You know what I mean.  Your saliva is on these.  That has your DNA.  That’s dangerous.”

“Agreed.  That’s why Daniel is making sure all of our glasses are going directly into a bucket of cleaning solution that is corrupting my DNA sample.”  Lena tapped at her temple, smiling from one side of her face.  “See, I’m smart.”

“Lady, you’re so clever you could go in a revolving door in front of me and come out behind me.”

Lena’s smile grew but then, as she considered that, she frowned.

“Here,”  Daniel came back with a piece of paper and a pen, laying them in front of Lena.  “Scrawl your name on the bottom of this while you still can.”

“How rude.  I’m perfectly capable, Daniel.”  Still, Lena made a series of looping letters of which only the first L’s in her name were recognizable members of the English alphabet.  “There.”  Lena held it up proudly for the other two to inspect.

Alex squinted and then shrugged.

“That’s perfect.”  Daniel took back the paper and pen, though Lena looked like she was ready to put up over a fight for the writing implement before he snatched it from her hand.  “The usual tip?”

“Yes, Barbara was lovely.  She left us alone to drink, got our orders right, and didn’t poison us beyond the usual alcohol poisoning.  That’s a ten out of ten in my book.”

With a nod, Daniel walked back to the bar.  He was only gone for a minute before returning with two glasses of water that he put on the table with two small medicine cases.  “Here, drink these and take what’s in here.  It’s vitamins and aspirin.  You’ll be grateful for it in the morning.”

Reaching up and patting Daniel’s cheek, Lena said, “You’re a prince among men, Daniel.  Why aren’t you married?”

Pulling her hand away from his cheek, Daniel placed it on the table and gently held it there.  “Because I’m married to my job, ma’am.  Will you two be good for a few minutes while I bring the car around?”

“Daniel.”  Alex looked at him very seriously.  “I’ve got this.”

He sighed.  “No arresting anyone while I’m gone and no bar fights.  Those are buddy activities.”

“No promises.”  Alex smiled.

Shaking his head, Daniel walked to the front of the bar.

Opening her pill case, Alex said, “He’s a good one.  You did good with that one, Lena.”

“I’d like to think I know how to spot trustworthy people.  You, Agent, are trustworthy.  You’re a complex machine, but you’re trustworthy.  I know all about betrayal.  I am a Luthor, after all.”

The smile fell off of Alex’s face, and her mouth hung open.  “You’re a Luthor like Lex Luthor Luthors?” 

Lena nodded.  “Alexander, my brother, is in jail.  I testified against him, and now I run the company.”

“Ooooooh.  Lena, I think we have a problem.”

“Is it because I’m a Luthor?”

“No, yeah, sorta.”  Alex gave a modified shrug, lolling her head about.  “You see, I work with Supergirl.  She and I are like this.”  Elbow on the table, Alex held her hand up with two fingers crossed.

Leaning forward and eyes wide, Lena spoke in hushed tones.  “Alex, are you … DEO?”

Alex leaned forward until her face was only inches from Lena’s.  “You’re not supposed to know that.  How do you know that?  How do you know about—”

Lena placed a finger on Alex’s lips.  “I like your mouth better when you aren’t asking me questions.”  As Alex nodded, Lena grabbed her by the tie, pulling her closer across the table until their lips met.

When Daniel returned, they were still kissing.  Lena still had Alex by the tie, though her other hand was playing with the hairs at the back of Alex’s neck, nails raising goosebumps on sensitive flesh.  Alex was cupping Lena’s cheek with one hand, the other playing with the woman’s soft hair.

“Ahem.”

Their kiss breaking, Alex smiled up at the man.  “Hey, Daniel.  You came back.”

“We learned something about each other in your absence,” Lena said with a sickly-sweet smile.

He grabbed one of each of their hands, placing them palm up on the table, and dumped the contents of the pill containers in them, then pushed their waters into their other hands.  “Swallow these, then we’re leaving.”

Among nodding and muttering, they complied.

“Can you two walk?  Come on.”  He reached out, attempting to help them to their feet.

“I got it.  I got it.”  Alex swatted his hands away and, swaying a bit, pointed up at him with one finger.  “I am a federal agent you know.”

“Yes, ma’am.”  He turned to Lena, make sure she was on her feet.  “Are you all right, ma’am?”

“Perfectly fine.”  She took three or four steps before looking down at her feet with a frown.  “I shouldn’t have worn heels.”

“Let me help you,” Alex said, reaching out to loop an arm around Lena’s waist as they swayed together toward the exit.

“This is going well,” Daniel muttered.

They managed to all get outside and into the car without any major incidents, though the ladies denied the need for seatbelts in their desire to sit close together.  On the brief drive over to Alex’s apartment, Daniel ignored anything that went on in the backseat.  Luckily it was only a few minutes to get there.  Once there, a decision was made that Alex needed help making sure she got into her apartment and Lena could not be left alone in the car, so the trio found themselves in the elevator heading up to Alex’s place, Lena and Alex kissing again, and Daniel staring at the closed elevator.

“Ahem.”  He stood just outside the elevator with his arm in the door, not looking back at the other occupants.  “We’re at your floor, ma’am.”

They exited the elevator, winding their way down the hallway, and Lena, who had taken off her shoes at some point and had them hanging from one hand, said, “This doesn’t look like my apartment building.”

“No, ma’am.  It’s not your apartment, ma’am.  This is … it’s the agent’s apartment, ma’am.”

“Ah.”  Lena nodded.  “Am I going home with you?”

“Okay,” Alex replied with a smile.

“No.”  Daniel took Alex’s keys as she struggled with them.  “We’re just making sure your friend here gets into her apartment okay.  Then I’m taking you home, ma’am.”

“Are you sure?”  Lena squinted up at Daniel.  “Going home with some woman sounds like me.”

“You have that 7:00 AM con call with London,” he reminded her.  “Jess made me promise I’d get you home for that.”

“Ah work.  Now that sounds like me, boring and dependable.”

“I don’t think you’re boring.”  Alex took Lena’s hand, pushing her against the apartment door and leaning close to kiss her.  “I think you’re really sexy.”

Daniel had already unlocked the door, and when they kissed, their weight pushed open the door.  They stumbled inside, and both ended up sprawled on the floor, laughing.  It was with Daniel’s help they made it back to their feet.  Once he was sure they were both unharmed, he returned Alex’s keys and, rolling his eyes at their need to kiss goodbye at the door, took Lena home.  Alex was left to get herself to bed, or couch, or floor.  Whatever it was, she’d do it in the safety of her own apartment.


End file.
